


Morning Sun

by Ceata88



Series: OC AU [1]
Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Cole's a useless gay, M/M, Multi, Takes place after season 7, There's hints of Cole/Zane/Pixal at the end, also starring some appearances from a few elemental masters, hanahaki, hopefully not that intense though, or my own version of it, there's a bit of body horror involving plants, there's some hints at season 8
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-21
Updated: 2018-07-03
Packaged: 2019-05-26 12:48:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 25,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15001211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ceata88/pseuds/Ceata88
Summary: During their search for their Master, Cole follows a lead to a mage who could possibly give them information on where to look. However, facing her alone was a mistake, one he's forced to deal with when he ends up with a curse. The clock is ticking as a plant grows in his chest in response to his romantic feelings toward Zane.Cole is desperate to find a solution, one that doesn't involve confessing his feelings or removing them completely. With the help of Pixal and some other friends from his past, they might be able to manage it.Maybe.





	1. Seeds

**Author's Note:**

> You know I don't dip in Hanahaki a lot, because I feel like people never take it to it's full potential.
> 
> So uh, I made this. 
> 
> It's mostly Cole and Zane, but I'm weak for the ot3. And also Pixal and Cole could have such a good dynamic anyway if the show let them. 
> 
> Fic is done, will update every other day.

    Cole shouldn’t have gone alone.  
  
    That was his first mistake out of many that lead him to such a disaster.   
  
    But with the team digging up more and more leads on where to look for Master Wu, they all decided the best option would be to split up. They could easily contact each other if they needed back up, right?   
  
    The lead Cole was following wasn’t just to find Wu, it was also to potentially shut down a mage that had been terrorizing a village as of late. The woman had been dealing a lot in dark magic, creating a handful of monsters in the process. While it wasn’t ideal to make deals with someone like that, it was possible her powers could at least give them a hint to follow.   
  
    And if she refused, well, they would defeat her and move on.  
  
    Unfortunately, all Cole had on her was her name–Ruta–and a possible location. Of course she’d pick the toxic bogs as a hide out. Cole had wished eons ago he’d never have to return here. Then again, by now it was almost a fond memory. He and his team fighting snakes, young Lloyd scampering around The Bounty, when their biggest mistake was losing a flute.   
  
    It was odd sometimes. They had all grown up so much, learned so much, but how much had they lost during all of that?   
  
    He couldn’t dwell on it now. He used his elemental dragon to quickly navigate the bog and avoid the acidic water. Even with a birds eye view he found himself getting dizzy. So much of this place looked the same.   
  
    Thankfully, Ruta found him first.   
  
    The attack was a surprise, but not to a point he couldn’t dodge it. The creature–a snake?–shot out of the water and into the air. It was huge. Cole pulled his dragon back so the snake couldn’t bit its neck.  
  
    The creature was mostly bones. Mud from the bog clung to it. Its green eyes followed Cole as it fell below the water.  
  
    He landed quickly, wanting to avoid another sneak attack. With his hammer out he glanced around, listening for a cue.  
  
    “What brings you here, Master of Earth?”  
  
    He spun around to see a young woman emerge from a hollow tree. Her hair was done up with small, messy braids lined with beads and flowers. Her white robes were tattered, the bottoms stained with mud. The boney snake slid slowly out of the water, trailing around behind her.  
  
    Cole kept his hammer in his grip. “You know me?”  
  
    She scoffed and fiddled with her hair. “You don’t get into this business without knowing a thing or two about elemental powers. Nice dragon, by the way. Almost makes me jealous.”  
  
    He didn’t respond to that. It almost sounded like a trap.  
  
    “So,” she sat on the snake’s head. “Did I finally kick up enough dust to have the big bad ninjas come after me?”  
  
    “Yes, but that’s not why I’m here.” Cole lowered his hammer, but kept it close.  
  
    “Oh?”  
  
    “Our master was lost in a time stream. We want to find him.”  
  
    “I should be flattered you assume I can find him.” Ruta wiggled one of the snake’s fangs.  
  
    “Can you?”  
  
    “Maybe, maybe not. What are you willing to give me to try?”   
  
    “How does not going to prison sound?”  
  
    Ruta smiled and shook her head. “No dice. Is that really all you’re willing to give me? I’d bet that archeologist has a few good things. You’re in the airjitzu temple now too, correct?”  
  
    Yeah, Cole wasn’t about to hand anything of Yang’s over. “No. You either cooperate or you’re going down.”  
  
    She just laughed at that as she climbed down. “Oh, Earth ninja, if you planned to fight you shouldn’t have come alone.”  
  
    Cole braced his stance, feeling the ground shift beneath him before bringing down his hammer. The earth shattered, but Ruta was quick to jump on her snake as it lifted her out of harms way. She was already shouting out spells. The ground shook again, but Cole knew he wasn’t the cause.  
  
    Vines burst out from below. Cole jumped out of their grip and used airjitzu to take safety in one of the trees.  
  
    “Pixal,” he kept his eyes on Ruta. “I’m gonna need back up.”   
  
    “Kai and Jay are nearby. I’ll let them know.”  
  
    That was all for that conversation when he felt the tree move. The plant seemed to come to life as the branches tried to snatch him from his perch.   
  
    Long distance fighting wouldn’t help him. He had to get closer. Cole summoned his dragon as he jumped. He tried to go straight for her, but her mouth was still moving. Another tree bent itself to block his path.  
  
    “I have this whole bog enchanted.” Ruta shouted. “You really think you can stop me on my own turf?”  
  
    Cole let his dragon vanish. He shot toward the ground, slamming his hammer into the earth. He felt the impact in his bones. Everything shook, tearing the roots from the trees and the vines. The snake lost its balance, barely catching Ruta before she hit the toxic water.  
  
    “Sorry,” Cole stepped over. “But you don’t own any turf where I’m concerned.”  
  
    Ruta coughed and caught her breath, but she was still smiling. “No, perhaps not. But the bog holds more than just dirt.”  
  
    Cole didn’t have time to ask. Something sharp hit his ankle. He glanced down to see a snake curling around his leg. He attempted to kick it off, but already his muscles fell like jello.  
  
    “Night, night,” Ruta’s laughter turned into an echo as everything went dark.   
  
\----------------------  
  
    Every muscle in Cole’s body ached as he came too. His heartbeat pounded in his ears. He tried to move only to notice the amount of restraints. Was he standing up? He opened his eyes, but could barely see in the low light of the room.   
  
    As his eyes adjusted he noticed what was holding him up. Vines, of course, wrapped tight enough that even his strength was having trouble snapping free.   
  
    “Oh, you’re awake. I better work quick.”  
  
    He followed the sound to see Ruta spinning the contents of a bowl around in her hands. She turned to look at him, eyes glowing in the dark. The image made him jump.  
  
    “The hell do you want?” He tried to pull himself free again. “Why didn’t you kill me?”  
  
    “Because I thought of a solution.” Her cheerful tone was unnerving. She dumped whatever was in the bowl into her hands. “A way we can both get what we want.”  
  
    “What are you talking about?”   
  
    “Well I have good news and bad news.” She stepped over to him, grinning. “The good news is, you don’t need to look for your Master. You and your team will inevitably see him again. Isn’t that nice?”   
  
    Cole just glared at her. “Why are you telling me that?”  
  
    “Because I figured I should return the favor you’re going to do for me.”  
  
    “I don’t remember agreeing to that.”  
  
    “Oh, it’s not optional.” Ruta narrowed her eyes and held out her hand. Cole glanced down to see nothing more than a few seeds. “See, I’ve had this spell I’ve really wanted to test, but I could never find a good subject for it. And then you with your unspoken crush come along.”  
  
    Cole tried to rip free again, his strength slowly coming back. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”   
  
    “Don’t play dumb. I already took a peek in your head while you were napping. I know how much you daydream about that pretty nindroid.” She put a hand on her cheek and let off a dreamy sigh.   
  
    He ignored the heat in his cheeks. “I don’t think about him that much.”   
  
    Her smile was beyond smug. “‘I’m so glad Zane’s okay. If he didn’t come back I don’t know what I’d do.’”   
  
    Cole’s blood went cold. Just what kind of power did she have?  
  
    He and his team heavily underestimated her.   
  
    “Don’t feel bad, everyone gets crushes. I’d tell you about mine, but I don’t have the time since your power is coming back.”   
  
    Cole tugged again, one of the vines broke. “What does any of this have to do with your spell?”   
  
    “Well, first thing’s first.”   
  
    The vines suddenly went tight, slamming Cole against the wall. The impact had him tilting his head back. Ruta grabbed his jaw and opened his mouth.   
  
    Cole tried to spit the seeds out, but when she slammed his mouth shut he ended up swallowing them instead.   
  
    It tasted like acid. Sharp pain trailed down his throat and only got worse when it reached his chest. Ruta stepped back as the vines went slack. Cole hit the floor, coughing, praying he could dislodge it all somehow.   
  
    No good, the pain only got worse, needles digging through his sternum all the way to his spine.   
  
    Cole tried to stand up, looking at her. “The hell did you do?”  
  
    Ruta chuckled. “Here’s the little game we’ll play. Those seeds are going to respond to your feelings. Every time you think about Zane, wish you could touch him, hold his hand, sweep him into your arms, those seeds are going to grow.”   
  
    She leaned closer. “They won’t stop either, not until your body is turned into a hollow piece of wood. But, it’s not perfect. If you confess your feelings, and they’re returned, the spell will vanish.” She clapped her hands together. “Isn’t that great?”   
  
    Cole shot off the ground. He grabbed her by the throat and slammed her into the wall before smashing his fist next to her face.  
  
    “Where the hell do you get off on toying with someone else’s feelings?”   
  
    There was a brief moment of shock on her face, but it vanished. “Kill me if you want, Cole, it won’t make it go away. So, what are you going to do? Try and cure yourself by confessing? Hold out until it kills you?”  
  
    “What if I have someone take these damn seeds out?”  
  
    Ruta sighed. “You could, but then all your feelings for Zane would vanish. Would you be okay with that? Never caring about him in any sense of the word?”   
  
    Cole’s blood ran cold again. This couldn’t be happening. What did he do?  
  
    The temptation to crush her neck in his grip was overwhelming.   
  
    “Why the hell aren’t you scared right now?” He growled.  
  
    “Killing people isn’t your style.” Ruta snorted. “If it was a lot of those villains never would have come back. You know Pythor is still around, right?”  
  
    “That doesn’t mean I won’t drag your ass to prison.”   
  
    She smiled at him and actually reached a hand out, drawing a line down his chest. “That nindroid has some pretty blue eyes, doesn’t he?”  
  
    The image flashed into Cole’s head before he could stop it. Pain shot through his chest again and he lost his grip. Ruta’s laughter echoed in the room as the vines pulled her into the wall.   
  
    When Cole recovered he tried to punch through them, but they easily absorbed the impact. Ripping them down wasn’t fast enough.  
  
    She was gone.   
  
    Damn it. Damn it all.  
  
    He shouldn’t have come alone.


	2. Roots

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My net fucked up but if you think I won't go to starbucks to update this ur wrong
> 
> I'm glad people love/hate Ruta already I do too

    “What do you mean you lost her?”  
  
    Cole glared at Jay as he waited in the recovery room on the bounty. “If it bothers you that much, you can go looking for her. I wasn’t about to pry through who knew how many vines when she can sink through them like the clearance rack of a clothing store.”  
  
    Kai snorted at the analogy, but Jay still looked frustrated.   
  
    “Chill out,” Kai said. “We at least know we’ll find Wu.”  
  
    “Assuming she wasn’t lying.” Jay snapped. “Why did she even tell you that?”  
  
    Right, Cole never told them the full story. Just that he got bit by a snake–which Pixal was currently analyzing to make sure none of that would hurt him later–and when he tried to break out of her hideout, she vanished.   
  
    “Look, it’s done.” Cole rested his face in his hands. “Can you both let me take a nap or something? I still feel like shit.”   
  
    Jay kept pouting but Kai nudged him toward the door. Right now the Bounty was headed toward Yang’s temple. The team planned to regroup later in the day.  
      
    With the room empty Cole collapsed on the bed, palm pressed against his chest. Right now the sharp pain had gone down to a dull ache, but he was still very aware that it was there. The question was, what was he supposed to do about it?  
  
    “Cole.”  
  
    He tilted his head back to look at the screen. “Yeah Pix?”   
  
    “In terms of venom I’m detecting no dangerous amounts of it in your system.”   
  
    “Well, that’s good.”  
  
    “But there’s the matter of that thing in your chest.”  
  
    Cole sputtered. “Hah, what? What do you mean?”  
  
    “Please don’t play dumb.” She sighed. “I am aware you intentionally didn’t tell your team the whole story, and would like to keep it a secret, but that will not help you.”  
  
    Cole ran a hand down his face and kept looking at the door. “Don’t tell the others. Not right now.”   
  
    “I will only agree to that if you explain it to me. If your decision to hide it puts you in danger I will deem it necessary to inform everyone.”  
  
    That sounded fair, but Cole didn’t like it. “It’s a curse, Ruta put it there.”  
  
    “Did she tell you the nature of it?”  
  
    “It’s a plant. It’s gonna grow, possibly kill me if I don’t knock it out.”   
  
    “Cole, that is not good.”  
  
    “Yes, thank you. Didn’t figure that out.” He rolled over on the bed.   
  
    “Did she mention how to stop it? Can it be removed?”  
  
    “It could, but that’s not ideal. The only other way to stop it is uh...” He cringed. There’s no way he could tell Pixal this.   
  
    “Is what?”  
  
    “Don’t worry about it.”  
  
    “Tell me or I’m informing everyone right now.”  
  
    Cole sat up and glared at the monitor. “You’re merciless, you know that?”   
  
    “I am concerned for your wellbeing. I wish to help. I can only do that if you tell me what is going on.”   
  
    He groaned and ran his hand through his hair. “It has to do with a crush I have on someone.”   
  
    “Who?”  
  
    “Pix...”  
  
    “ _Who?_ ”   
  
    Cole had honestly never heard her so annoyed in his life. Then again, to be fair, he’d never had such a long conversation with her alone. He probably should correct that if he lived long enough.   
  
    He hid his face in his hands as he mumbled out the answer. “It’s Zane.”   
  
    The pause was much shorter than he expected. “I see. And it’s growing because of those feelings?”  
  
    Well, at least she wasn’t mad. “Yeah. She said if I confess and those feelings are returned then it’ll stop but um...” He looked over at the screen. “Considering he has you, I’m pretty sure that’s a bust.”   
  
    The pause was longer this time. “I cannot control what Zane thinks or feels. I think you should tell him.”   
  
    “Not happening.”   
  
    “Cole, you said this could kill you.”  
  
    “Yeah, and what if he can’t feel the same way?” He snapped at the screen. “Then he’s just going to feel like shit and blame himself. He’ll think it’s his fault I died. I’m not doing that to him.” He flopped back onto the bed. “There has to be another way around it.”   
  
    “I will see what I can find, and will keep it a secret, for now.”   
  
    Cole thanked her, despite noting the edge on her voice at the end of that sentence. He couldn’t rely on her to keep it under wraps, and he couldn’t blame her either. If the situation became critical enough it wouldn’t be fair to his team to keep them in the dark.   
  
    But at least while it was still early, he wanted to find his own solution. Then they could all pretend it never happened.   
  
\----------------  
  
    When the Bounty docked at the temple, Cole slipped his way inside. The more people he could avoid the better. Especially considering who he wanted to talk to.   
  
    Cole made his way up to the attic of the temple. It was often hard to find Yang with the sunlight so bright, but it was never impossible.   
  
    “What have you gotten yourself into now, boy?”  
  
    Cole looked at the painting, watching it shift as Yang spoke.   
  
    “Shame, I was hoping you could tell me.”   
  
    “I can only tell that it’s a curse, and a powerful one at that. What kind of mage did you get involved with.”  
  
    Cole sat down on a nearby crate. “Her name is Ruta. Didn’t think she’d be that capable. She’s only a few years older than me.”   
  
    “Underestimating your opponent is a foolish mistake.”  
  
    “Yeah, thanks.” Cole snorted. “Do you know any way around it?”   
  
    “No, although I may have dug into dark magic the nature of most of it still eludes me. Had I been more aware... well...”  
  
    Cole didn’t respond to that. His gaze moved to the corner, not really staring at anything in particular. The skin on his chest itched.   
  
    “Why even curse me like this? It’s the same as killing me, right?”   
  
    “I could not even begin to explain what she is thinking, Cole.” The eyes of the painting fixed on him. “But if you face this with the same determination as the curse of this temple I have no doubt you’ll find a solution.”   
  
    “Thanks.”  
  
    It didn’t really give him any answers but it put him at ease. He stayed up in the attic for a while, keeping his gaze fixed out the window.   
  
    So far there were only two solutions, neither of which were actually solutions. Maybe there was some way he could trick the spell. Maybe if he just got over his crush it would wither up.  
  
    That sounded simple, but he knew it wouldn’t be. His crush on Zane had been buzzing around since that first year they met. It had it’s ups and downs, of course, but it was always there.   
  
    Maybe they could find some other spell to trick the plant into thinking those feelings were returned. It wasn’t an impossibility, but Cole certainly didn’t know how to make one.   
  
    Right now his head just kept going in circles. Until Pixal at least came up with a lead he didn’t even have anywhere to go.   
  
    With the ache in his chest going mute he finally noticed how hungry he was. Cole sighed and made his way down to the kitchen to dig up a snack. Hopefully Kai hadn’t eaten all of the pop tarts again.   
  
    Cole dug through the cupboards, cursing when he realized his fear was a reality. That meant he had to find something else. He shut the door only to now notice Zane standing on the other side.  
  
    Cole shouted and jumped back, his spine hitting the counter. He hissed and cursed.  
  
    “Oh, my apologies. I thought you heard me come in.” Zane stepped over, reaching out to steady him.  
  
    Cole dodged his grip, his heartbeat already picking up. “It’s fine uh, didn’t know you and the others were back.”  
  
    Zane tilted his head. “We got here ten minutes ago. Kai mentioned your encounter with the mage didn’t go well.”  
  
    “No,” Cole avoided his gaze with everything he had.   
  
   _“That nindroid has some pretty blue eyes, doesn’t he?”_  
  
    Damn her for bringing it up. Every time Cole got a glimpse of that blue out of the corner of his eye it was all he could think about.   
  
    The pain in his chest was coming back.   
  
    “Is everything alright? They mentioned you got bit by something but Pixal said that had been neutralized.”   
  
    Cole did his best to laugh. “Yeah, just trying to take it easy just in case, you know? Maybe eat something.”   
  
    Zane smiled. “Would you like me to make something? Nya was also mentioning that she’d like to eat.”   
  
    Something sharp hit his rib and he couldn’t stop himself from cringing. “Nah, you don’t need to do that Zane.”   
  
    The nindroid frowned before crossing his arms. “What is wrong? You never turn down food.”   
  
    “Look, it’s not–”   
  
    Suddenly Zane reached out, holding Cole’s face as he forced him to look him in the eye.   
  
    His brain paused. His focus was on nothing but that shade of blue and the soft cool metal on his skin.   
  
    “Cole, what is wrong?”   
  
    The air left his lungs. What was wrong? He was in love and every second he was reminded of that it just hurt him more.   
  
    That thought made something tear through his chest. He could feel something wrap around his ribs and prick the edge of his skin. It was so intense he lost his footing, would have hit the ground if Zane didn’t catch him.   
  
    “Cole?”  
  
    No good. Every second Zane hung onto him, spoke to him, said his name, the pain just got worse and worse. If this kept up he’d be dead before the day even ended.   
  
    When Zane gripped his shoulder, instinct took over. He shoved Zane back, despite how much he didn’t want to. He had to get out of here.   
  
    “Sorry, Zane.” He stumbled out the apology as he ran past the nindroid and back up the stairs. Not that it was easy. The pain made it hard to breath. His lungs refused to expand all the way.   
  
    He spotted Nya and Jay on his way to his room, giving neither of them the chance to ask what was up. But what did it matter if he avoided it right now? They’d ask later, and again after that if he kept refusing. That’s just how friends were sometimes.  
  
    Cole shut his bedroom door as tight as it would go, leaning against it so no one could surprise him. He kept trying to catch his breath, get past the pain in his ribs, as he pulled out his communicator.   
  
    “Pix, tell me you have something.” He whispered. Normally he would just text, but right now he didn’t want to deal with the silence.   
  
    “Only a couple of things.” She answered. “And I don’t think either of them are a solution.”  
  
    “But it’s a lead, right?”   
  
    “There’s a guild of mages that meet not far from where the Fangpires were sealed. Other than that the only source of dark magic I’m aware of is Chen and Clouse. Perhaps there’s some information on the island.”   
  
    A trip back to that place didn’t sound ideal right now, but a mages guild sounded manageable. Sneak in, grab some books, sneak back out.  
  
    “Cole, please do not investigate these places yourself.”  
  
    The hell? Could she read minds? “I don’t have a choice and you know it.”  
  
    “You could tell someone other than me.”  
  
    “Not happening.”   
  
    She sighed. “Can you at least wait until I gather some more information? The more prepared you are the safer you’ll be.”  
  
    “Yeah, fine but... I can’t stay here.”  
  
    “Why not?”  
  
    “It’s Zane,” he was whispering again. “The guy smiles at me and I can feel this thing getting worse. The more distance I put between us right now the better.”  
  
    “You already know my opinion on the matter.”  
  
    Cole glared at the communicator.  
  
    “But very well. Keep your communicators nearby, and please put some effort into staying out of trouble.”   
  
    He scoffed at that but didn’t want to argue. He wasn’t in a position to taunt her right now.   
  
    Instead he focused on gathering his things. Weapons, few changes of clothes, cash, and his music player. Just in case.   
  
    Just as he zipped up his bag there was a knock on the door. He held his breath.   
  
    “Cole? Are you in there?”  
  
    Zane. Of course it was Zane. It couldn’t be Kai, someone he could talk to without having a panic attack right now. Cole’s first instinct was to jump out the window, but he couldn’t. If he didn’t answer the nindroid would only be more curious.   
  
    He took a deep breath, holding it in as he opened the door.   
  
    Zane stared back at him, concern obvious by his expression.   
  
    Cole exhaled, although it came out more like a wheeze. “What’s up?”   
  
    Zane’s frown only got worse. “You are acting strange.”   
  
    “Uh, yeah, maybe a bit.” He leaned against the door frame. “But it’s nothing to worry about.”  
  
    “I find that hard to believe.”   
  
    Cole distracted himself by trying to decide if Pixal got her sassiness from Zane or if it was the other way around. “Fine, how about it’s nothing I want to talk about?”   
  
    “That doesn’t make it much better.”  
  
    Cole kept glancing back at the window, trying to think of a way out of this. “Look, Zane–”  
  
    The nindroid suddenly blinked and straightened up. Then he put his hand up to his head, like he always did when he spoke to Pixal. “What? Now?” A pause. “Very well.”  
  
    Cole blinked. “What’s up?”  
  
    “Apparently Jay needs my assistance on The Bounty.” Zane crossed his arms, annoyed. Cole couldn’t help but study his expression. The way the nindroid’s eyebrows moved always amused him.   
  
    Something digging toward his spine ruined that thought, but he cringed through it, using it to keep up a smile. “Look uh, I’ll tell you about it later.”   
  
    Zane’s blue eyes dug into his. “Are you certain?”  
  
    “Yup, promise.”  
  
    That seemed to satisfy him. With a nod he headed back down the hall and Cole slammed the door shut again. He felt guilty, almost, but it hadn’t been a complete lie. If they really couldn’t find a way to fix all of this he’d let Zane know at least some of the details. And if they did fix it, well, Cole could just laugh about it.  
  
    Until then he had to go. He had to get somewhere they wouldn’t go looking for him, before someone else came up here to check on him.  
  
    He slung his bag and his hammer over his shoulder before grabbing his communicator.  
  
    “You are welcome, by the way.” Pixal said as he opened the window.  
  
    “Huh?”  
  
    “For distracting Zane.”  
  
    “So... Jay doesn’t need help on The Bounty?”  
  
    “I believe he does, the engine room is flooded with smoke. He did not, however, ask for assistance.”  
  
    Cole tried to laugh, but his chest still hurt. He glanced around the grounds outside of his window. No one there, and thankfully it was the side of the building facing away from The Bounty. He could make a quick jump off the side and summon his dragon.   
  
    “Fine, thanks Pix.” He said before jumping down.   
  
    “Feel free to thank me more in the future.”  
  
    He shook his head as he ran for the edge. No doubt he’d be dealing with her sass for this entire mission. Was she always like this? Or was she just annoyed with him for keeping it a secret.  
  
    Either way, he had to admit he was glad he wasn’t doing it all alone this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Does anyone in the show call her Pix??? They should, it's cute.


	3. Sprouts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My internet has returned, huzzah 
> 
> Anyone else noticed that Zane's easily angered when he's stressed
> 
> Also who's ready to see some old friends

    Zane was suspicious when he got called to The Bounty. It was rare Jay asked for help, even when he really needed it.   
  
    That suspicion began to dwindle when he saw the amount of smoke. Somehow Jay hadn’t thought of the logical answer to open a window, which let out most of it.   
  
    “It’s rare for you to make such an error.” Zane nudged the blue ninja closer to the window for some fresh air.  
  
    “It’s rare for the engine to burn out this much. Guess we were in too much of a hurry to get back.” Jay stuck his head out the window, taking a deep breath. “Might need Nya to help me get it back up to snuff.”   
  
    “It’s odd that you did not call her for assistance then.”  
  
    Jay turned to look at him, raising his scarred eyebrow. “Huh?”  
  
    “Pixal said you asked for some help.”  
  
    “But I didn’t?”   
  
    Zane froze, his system trying to put this together. Jay didn’t ask for help, meaning Pixal had lied. But why would she do that? It wasn’t in her nature.  
  
    “Cole,” he murmured.   
  
    Jay stood up straight. “Huh?”  
  
    Zane didn’t answer. He rushed out of The Bounty, hearing Jay close behind him. There was only one logical reason for Pixal to distract him, and considering Cole’s strange behavior the likeliness only increased.   
  
    He knew it was rude not to knock, but Zane didn’t before tossing open Cole’s bedroom door.   
  
    He was gone. The window was open. The hammer was missing.  
  
    What was going on?  
  
    “Uh, where’s Cole?” Jay poked his head around Zane to get a better view of the room.   
  
    Zane crossed his arms again. “I believe we should ask Pixal that question.”   
  
    It was silent for a while, but Zane knew she heard him. He stood there, glaring at the open window, waiting.   
  
    “He is safe.” She finally answered.   
  
    “Where is he?”  
  
    “If he wished for you to know that he would have told you himself.”   
  
    “Is this a spat?” Jay spoke up, cringing. “Because I might turn off my communicator if it is.”   
  
    Was it? Zane didn’t want it to be, but he was never fond of his teammates leaving him in the dark. Something strange was going on, and it was even stranger that Pixal was involved.  
  
    “My apologies, Zane, but he requested for me not to tell you for the time being.” Pixal returned to her gentle tone.   
  
    He wanted to ask why, but knew he wouldn’t get an answer to that either. Instead he spun around, heading back downstairs. “We should go out and find him.”   
  
    “He is safe.” Pixal insisted.  
  
    “This cannot possibly be considered safe.” Zane glanced back at Jay, who mostly seemed to be following to keep up with the conversation. “Did that mage do something to him?”  
  
    “Zane,” Pixal insisted. “If the situation becomes dire I promise to inform you. I will keep an eye on him.”   
  
    His irritation made something in his system sputter. That wasn’t the answer he wanted to hear. He wanted details. Cole was in trouble and they were all expected to stay here and ignore it? Weren’t they a team? Shouldn’t they deal with this together?   
  
    “Zane.”  
  
    Jay’s hand on his arm almost surprised him.   
  
    “I don’t like this either, but let’s leave him to it for now. There has to be a good reason he’s trying to do it by himself.”   
  
    “Need I remind you the last time one of our team tried to handle things himself he almost died.” Zane pointed down the hall. “And now he’s lost in a time stream and we still have no leads of getting him back.”  
  
    Jay cringed, avoiding his gaze. “Well, okay yeah, but Pixal has an eye on him. She’ll tell us if he needs help.”   
  
    “Indeed,” Pixal said.   
  
    Zane still didn’t like that answer, but he forced himself to accept it as he continued down the hall. As angry as it made him he’d just have to trust Cole to handle this. He could always lecture the earth ninja when he got back.   
  
    “You okay?” Jay was still following him. “I uh, rarely see you get this mad.”   
  
    Zane glanced back at him. “I do not appreciate being lied to. You say I should trust Cole’s decision, but he could not trust us enough to explain the situation?”   
  
    The blue ninja sighed, his shoulders dropping. “Everyone has secrets.”  
  
    “I do not.”  
  
    He narrowed his eyes. “Yeah? Then how come whenever we try to talk to you about how you came back from fighting the Overlord you change the subject?”   
  
    Zane’s system flashed from shock. For a second his memory tried to drag up the sensation of those golden weapons in his grip. Everything went red before he forced it all back.   
  
    “That is not a matter of trust,” he looked away. “I simply–”  
  
    “Don’t want to talk about it. I get it, trust me.” Jay blew out a breath. “And maybe whatever that mage did brought up something personal for Cole. Maybe it’s not a big deal. He’ll take care of it before the end of the day and be back.”  
  
    Somehow Zane doubted that was the case, but it wasn’t as if he had a choice in the matter. “... I do not wish for our team to fall apart.”   
  
    Concern flashed over Jay’s face before he tried to smile. “I don’t either, but let’s not blow it out of proportion just yet, yeah?”  
  
    Zane snorted. “Funny for you to say that.”  
  
    “Hey, what does that mean?”  
  
    “You are notorious among our team for blowing things out of proportion.”  
  
    “I do not.”   
  
    “Three days ago you were crying because the temple lost power and your video game shut down.”  
  
    “I was in the middle of a complicated stage!”   
  
    Zane chuckled and Jay’s shrill tone. The lightning ninja huffed, realizing that he was only proving the nindroid’s point.   
  
    The argument had distracted him for a moment, but it didn’t last. He hoped wherever Cole was he truly was safe.   
  
\--------------------  
  
    “Sorry for showing up out of the blue.” Cole kept glancing around the kitchen’s decorations, almost stunned by the amount of equipment.  
  
    “It is fine,” Karlof handed him a cup of tea. “It is good to see you again, Cole.”   
  
    He cringed a bit and took a sip. “Yeah, I probably should have been visiting a lot more often.”  
  
    Karlof shrugged. “Life is busy. Specially with evil snakes and clock men.”  
  
    Cole snorted at the titles. “Yeah, thankfully they’re gone for the time being.”  
  
    Karlof’s smile fell though as he put his hands on his hips. “Why are you here, though? Where is your team? Something happen?”  
  
    “Uh,” Cole took another sip of tea. “They’re not here. They’re kind of who I’m hiding from.”   
  
    That only made the master of metal frown more. “Big fight? Lover spat?”  
  
    He choked on his tea, spitting half of it back into the cup. “What?”   
  
    “Did you have a fight with the metal man?”  
  
    “Zane?” Cole could feel his heart rate picking up. Bad. “I don’t– we’re not–”   
  
    “Saw your goo goo eyes you were making when you found him in prison cell.”   
  
    He could feel his cheeks getting warm, but worse than that he could feel whatever was in his chest growing again. Something kept curling around his ribs and sternum, getting tighter and tighter. He forced himself to breath through the pain.  
  
    “Apologies for assuming, but what is the reason?”   
  
    Right, change the subject, that would help. “I got cursed by a mage. Rather not have my team involved at the moment.”   
  
    “Why not?”  
  
    “There’s uh, the possibility they could make it worse.”   
  
    Karlof didn’t seem convinced by that, but turned away and headed over to the fridge. “So, what should Karlof make for dinner. Noodles?”   
  
    Cole laughed, coughing against the strain in his chest. “I hope that was a joke.”  
  
    “What? Karlof makes great noodles.”   
  
    “I dunno, I’m more in the mood for dumplings.”   
  
    Both of them were laughing by now. Cole took another sip of his tea, the warmth easing up the tightness in his chest bit by bit. He hoped he wouldn’t have to hang out here too long, but it felt much safer than he expected. He couldn’t have gone home, his team would have looked for him there.   
  
    Besides, Karlof was right, it had been far too long.   
  
    The hope of a short visit was dashed. Every morning Cole would see what Pixal had, and while she was gathering more and more information she kept advising him against trying to slip in.   
  
    Right now she was working on gathering names and locations of the people involved. It wasn’t easy, since the group meetings were supposed to be secret. Ever since Chen, black magic had become a major taboo on the mainland.   
  
    Perhaps, Pixal insisted, if they could find someone who wouldn’t attack them outright they could just try and gather information from them. Cole rejected that idea. Last time he tried to get help from a mage he got cursed.   
  
    The time wasn’t helping this curse either. While being away from his team and the temple kept his mind distracted, it didn’t work in the long term. Karlof would ask questions about what they had all been doing, about battle details, about living in a floating temple. Cole did his best to answer, but every time Zane would pop up in his mind it fell apart piece by piece.   
  
    At one point he was telling Karlof about how he recovered from being turned into a ghost. It was a story he loved telling, but maybe he was saying a bit too much, talking about how glad he was to be able to feel things again.   
  
    Because then he remembered, his whole team had practically dogpiled him. Hugging him, tugging on him, Jay jokingly tried to stick his arm through him. Zane was the only one who didn’t seem to participate until he lightly touched the back of Cole’s hand.   
  
   _“I almost envy you.”_   
  
    The phrase always stuck out in his mind, but at this moment he more so remembered how his hand snapped out to grab Zane’s. Because he had missed the sensation of cool metal against his skin.   
  
    And that memory put him on the floor. It was no longer his ribs that ached but his heart. Something was digging through it, sharp, slow, he swore it skipped a beat multiple times. As if the pain wasn’t bad enough, the stutters made him dizzy.   
  
    Karlof was fretting over him, asking what happened. Cole just excused it on the curse and went to go lie down until it passed.   
  
    His coughing got worse.   
  
    On day five, Pixal finally allowed him to make a move.  
  
    “There’s a meeting tonight at roughly 10PM.” She spoke as she used Cole’s communicator to project a map onto the table. “I cannot say how many people will be there, but I’ve gathered a rough estimate of thirty.”  
  
    That’s more than Cole could deal with if something went wrong. He glanced at Karlof who was also studying the map.   
  
    “A disguise is risky. There is no doubt most of these people would recognize you as the Earth Ninja.”   
  
    “Yeah, but I doubt I can gather much information by hiding in the trees.”   
  
    “Pluck one of the mages out.” Karlof said. “Get the information you need.” He followed that comment by cracking his knuckles.  
  
    “Uh, I’d rather not interrogate anyone if I can avoid it.”   
  
    “He has a point.” Pixal added. “If you could single one out it would be safer than alerting an entire crowd.”   
  
    “But how am I supposed to do that? They’re mages, by the way. No way they aren’t going to have some kind of magic security system to weed out spies.”   
  
    Karlof seemed deep in though, tapping a finger against the table while he stared at the map. “Perhaps we should call in some help?”  
  
    Cole raised an eyebrow. “From who?”   
  
\------------------  
  
    “So what’s the plan, exactly?” Camille leaned against her motorcyle, chewing on some gum. She’d changed a bit, more piercings in her ears and the right side of her head shaved. Or maybe it was both sides and the wave of purple hair was hiding it.   
  
    She agreed to help when Karlof contacted her, along with Neuro who stood nearby. His hands were folded, fingers making the shape of a diamond and he kept his eyes closed.   
  
    “We have to infiltrate this mage party.” Cole glanced into the woods. The Fangpire Tomb was located inside, but for now their party met on the side of the road to seem less suspicious. “I’m looking for information.”   
  
    Camille cracked her gum. “About what? I want details if I’m missing a date with my girlfriend for this.”   
  
    Cole opened his mouth, but Neuro spoke up instead.  
  
    “He is seeking information about dark magic involving plants.” The man still hadn’t opened his eyes. “This is in order to cure a curse that hurts him whenever he thinks about his crush on Zane.”  
  
    Yeah, that wasn’t helping. His cheeks were burning again as Camille snickered and Karlof muttered a, “Knew it.”   
  
    “Hey, can we not talk about it?” Cole raised his hand. “Because doing that just makes it worse.”   
  
    “Fine, I’ll tease you later.” Camille stood up straight. “So, you want me to whip up some disguises for us so we can sneak in?”  
  
    Cole blinked, lowering his hand. “All of us? You can do that?”  
  
    She grimaced before rolling her eyes. “Duh. Did you think we were all sitting on our butts after that tournament? No way.”   
  
    “Many of us have worked toward expanding our powers, and finding our true potentials.” Neuro added, opening one eye. “We often train together, in fact.”  
  
    “Yeah,” Karlof grinned. “Neuro’s big help.”  
  
    The concept hadn’t crossed Cole’s mind, but it made sense now. The master of the mind could easily pick out what was holding the elemental masters back.   
  
    “So I’m guessing all of you have some new tricks, huh?” He rubbed the back of his neck.   
  
    “Yes!” Karlof cheered. “Watch this.” He extended his hand toward Camille’s motorbike. After a beat the vehicle began to float up into the air. Camille gasped, jumping and pushing it back down.  
  
    “Hey, knock it off you big lout!”  
  
    Karlof just laughed but dropped the bike.   
  
    “If you allow it, I can mentally link our minds together.” Neuro tilted his head towards the woods, as if he was listening. “It would be a safer form of communication.”   
  
    “Whoa,” Cole tried to imagine what that was going to be like. “That’s pretty wild.”  
  
    “You could just scan the crowd too, right?” Camille stayed leaning on her bike. “See if anyone has any info.”  
  
    “A general scan wouldn’t lead to specific information. And as a warning if I hone in on someone I wouldn’t be aware of anyone else’s thoughts.”   
  
    “Yeah but that would be safer than all of us trying to mingle.” Cole frowned. “I don’t know how long we’re going to be able to blend in.”  
  
    “My disguises are flawless.” Camille sneered.  
  
    “Sure, but our heads aren’t. They might think it’s weird if four people who barely know anything about black magic are wandering around.”  
  
    “Cole is right,” Neuro said. “I can already sense their paranoia from here. The father we stay apart the better.”   
  
    “Okay, so we duck in, look around and duck out.” Camille stood up again and cracked her knuckles. “We’ve got this. Now which of you boys wants to go first?”   
  
\------------------  
  
    Cole still wasn’t used to this. He kept touching his face, over the odd mustache Camille had given him. It felt so real, even though he knew it wasn’t.   
  
    By now the team had split up, trying to mingle among the crowds. Thanks to the temporary mental link, however, he knew where they all were. He was just glad it wasn’t deep enough for anyone to do any digging.   
  
    Camille hadn’t been kidding, her disguises were flawless. At once once he’d bumped into Karlof and not even recognized it was him. She’d made him so much shorter, less intimidating.   
  
    At least she thought to give them all cloaks or robes. It made Cole feel a little less self conscious. That still didn’t help his nerves when he spoke to anyone though. It wasn’t as hard as he thought, playing up the idea that he was all new to this and asking questions. Plenty of the mages loved to talk about their work.  
  
    But he wasn’t coming up with anything that could help.   
  
     _Tell me you found something, Neuro._ Cole slipped away from a group conversation, trying to duck behind one of the tombs.   
  
   _I already honed in on the plant mage here. Nothing about a love related spell._   
  
     _She could have made it herself, right?_ Camille added. _I mean, from what I’m getting a lot of these mages make up their own crap._   
  
     _Then there must be a way to make up a counter._ Cole insisted. _But how do we ask that without being suspicious?_   
  
     _I’m on it._ Camille said.   
  
    Cole had no idea what her plan was, but he trusted that she’d manage it. In the meantime he needed to find somewhere else to look.   
  
   _Cole._  
  
    Neuro’s voice in his head was sharp, making him jump. “Huh?”  
  
     _There’s a woman about ten feet from you. I saw Ruta’s face in her mind._  
  
    Cole snapped his head around to try and place her. There she was, sitting on one of the graves and talking to another mage. It was a miracle he didn’t notice her sooner. Her black jeans and spike studded vest certainly made her stick out. Her outifit and her mostly shaved head made her look more like a biker than a mage. Cole glanced at her pony tail before trying to get a better look at her face. Her skin was dark but there was some kind of white paint on her skin. Perhaps to mimic a skull?   
  
    He moved a bit closer, now taking note of the sais on her hips. She was armed, probably dangerous if the muscles on her arm were any indication. While she was laughing at something the mage said that didn’t mean she was friendly.   
  
    “Yeah, it was unbelievable.” She kept cackling. “Boss sends her regards. Didn’t think tech magic was possible.”  
  
    The mage’s laughter was nervous and strained. “Yes, well, happy to help.” He glanced at Cole who was much closer by now, as if begging him to interrupt.  
  
    The woman noticed, her gaze snapping around to where he was standing. Her frown slipped back into a grin as she pulled out one of her sais. “You need something?”   
  
    Cole swallowed. His heart was trying to go faster, but whatever roots were in his chest kept making it stutter instead. “Was a bit curious. You almost seem to be in the wrong place.”  
  
    “I’m exactly where I want to be.” At least she was no longer pointing the weapon at him, twirling it in her hands. The other mage took his chance to slip away.   
  
    “Are you a mage?”  
  
    “Nah, but this isn’t a mage only party you know. Long as you aren’t here to cause trouble.” She snickered. “Though it’s tempting at times.”   
  
    “Then why are you here?”  
  
    “Wouldn’t you like to know.” She shifted on the grave, crossing one leg over the other. “Just doing business, and you don’t have anything I need.”  
  
    Cole crossed his arms. “You know that for a fact?”  
  
    “Uh, yeah,” she picked at her teeth with her weapon. “Ruta already told me who to talk to.”   
  
    Thank god, an opportunity. “You know Ruta?”  
  
    The lady blinked, lowering her weapon. Her expression went from irritated to excited. “Yeah, she send you here too? Apparently everyone here’s heard of her, even if she never comes. Weirdo always hides in the bogs for some reason.”   
  
    “So she knows all the mages here?”  
  
    “Huh, nah, she doesn’t care.” The woman was chewing on the end of her sai again. “She just uses the future.”  
  
    Cole blinked. “Huh?”  
  
    “Yeah, she can see the future. Didn’t you at least know that much? Why most people go see her.”   
  
    His blood went cold. She could what? Then wouldn’t she already know how this curse would turn out? What was the point of all this? Just a sick and twisted way to kill him?   
  
    The woman got off the grave. Only now did Cole realize how tall she was, enough to lean over him. “You good buddy? Looking a bit sick.”   
  
    “Funny you mention that,” Cole tried to smile as he took a step back. “Kind of why I’m here.”   
  
    “That so?”   
  
    “Yeah, thought I could find some help, sorry for bothering you.”   
  
    “Aw, it’s no bother.” Her arm wrapped around his shoulder and she tugged him close. Cole couldn’t get himself to breath properly. “Just confused. Cause, you know, when Ruta sends people here they always know where to go.”   
  
     _Cole._ Neuro cut into his mind. _Get out of there._   
  
    “What are you after?”  
  
    Cole let out an anxious breath. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”   
  
    He grabbed her arm and shoved his weight against, pulling her over his back and slamming her onto the ground. He foolishly thought that would be enough to stun her. She spun back onto her feet, looking more excited than surprised.   
  
    “Ruta mentioned there might be a fight.” She drew out her other sai and charged.  
  
    Cole wasn’t sure what to do. Using his powers would give him away. He had no weapons. He dodged her strike and tried to trip her. The woman spun back, her elbow colliding with his head. The impact sent him to the ground. His skin tingled.   
  
    When he glanced at his arm he realized the disguise dropped.  
  
    Now the woman look surprised. Then angry as she pointed at him. “You’re the earth ninja!”   
  
    Her voice was loud. The entire clearing went quiet as every mage in the area turned to stare at him.   
  
     _Guys, run._ Cole hoped the link was still active.   
  
    The woman charged again. Cole jumped out of the way, tried to make a break for the fence, only for a wall to jump in front of him. It glowed an eerie blue, and glancing back he could see the mage that was casting it.   
  
    No chance to hunt them down. The lady was still after him, her fist colliding with the magic wall. Cole took the opening to shove her back and used his element to create a wall of his own.   
  
    Not that it lasted. The woman managed to crumble it with a single kick.  
  
    Holy shit.   
  
     _Neuro, can’t you put them to sleep or something?_ Camille was shouting across the link.  
  
     _Not this many at once._  
  
 _Karlof will do it._   
  
    Huh?  
  
    The woman’s scream brought him back to his own fight. Her sai was pointed right at him. No time to move.  
  
    Then it froze, her body jerking forward for a moment. She stared at the weapon, even trying to pull it back.   
  
    “Mine now.”  
  
    Cole glanced to see Karlof drop his disguise. He snapped both of the weapons over to him.   
  
    Cole took his chance. He stomped on the ground, firing up a pillar of rock and sending the woman flying back.   
  
     _We must get out of here._ Neuro said. _One of the mages is–_  
  
    That thought wasn’t finished. The blue wall from earlier suddenly expanded, wrapping around the entire clearing.   
  
    So much for a clean escape.  
  
    “Uh, Pix?” Cole squeaked. “We might need some help.”   
  
    She didn’t respond, not like Cole would have had time to listen to it. The whole area erupted with magic and enchantments. Plants sprung to life. The ground shook. Someone was raising a bunch of skeletons from the ground.  
  
    Ew.  
  
    Camille must have broken her disguise at some point, because there she was, knocking out one mage with a heavy branch she found on the ground. A group of mages on the other side of the clearing were screaming, clutching their heads before falling to the ground. Neuro stood at the center of them.  
  
    Cole reminded himself not to piss the man off.   
  
    One of the mages tried to surrounded Karlof with stone pillars. Cole jumped forward to shove them all back into the ground. Karlof thanked him before his fist shifted into metal and he charged right into the fight. They had to knock out the mage who caused the barrier or they were never getting out of here.   
  
    “You!”  
  
    Cole spun toward the voice only for a fist to slam against his jaw. He stumbled back, but couldn’t respond before the woman grabbed his shirt, jerking him forward.   
  
    “What do you want with Ruta, huh? You better talk.”   
  
    He moved his jaw to check if it was broken. “Nothing, she’s the one who cursed me.”  
  
    The woman grinned. “Hah! Think you deserved it. What now, want revenge?”  
  
    “No.”  
  
    “What did she curse you with huh?” She kept glancing Cole over. “Any way for me to speed it up?”   
  
    Cole kneed her in the stomach to make her let go. The pain didn’t effect her that much, however. She was laughing again as she aimed another punch. He dodged it, tried to grab her arm. Her next punch nailed him right in the chest.   
  
    The vibrations shot through his ribs, and then through the plant in his chest. The vines, roots, whatever they were seemed to tighten. He couldn’t breath as he collapsed on the ground. Coughing wasn’t helping.   
  
    “Oh, was that a weak spot?” The woman hovered over him.   
  
    Cole couldn’t move.  
  
    The roar of an engine made everyone pause. Cole looked past the wall to see a pair of headlights. The Samurai X vehicle burst through the trees, fast enough that the magic barrier shattered on contact.   
  
    The remaining mages screamed and fled. The woman, however, looked unimpressed as the cockpit opened. Samurai X stepped out, his sword already drawn.  
  
    “Get in,” the cryptic voice said.   
  
    Cole moved to stand up only for a foot to slam against his back. The air got knocked out of him once again.  
  
    “Sorry, he’s not going anywhere. You’re welcome to try and take him.”   
  
    The samurai drew his other sword without a word and leapt towards them. Cole ducked his head and covered it, listening to the clang ring out above him. He wasn’t sure what the woman was blocking with, but apparently it was strong enough.   
  
    He coughed again when the woman used him as a platform to jump forward, going on the assault. The samurai deflected the hit, aiming for another one. The lady blocked it with the cuff on her wrist.   
  
    “You’re lucky I lost my sais.” She spat.   
  
    “Funny you assume that would make this an even fight.” Samurai X taunted back. He snapped his swords, making the woman stumble back. A second later he dropped the weapons, snatching the woman by the arm. With a twist he threw her a few feet away. She rolled on the ground before jumping back up, glaring.  
  
    “What? Did you really think that was going to–” Her yelling cut off and suddenly she dropped to the ground. Neuro stood behind her, hand still hovering in the air.   
  
    Yikes, thank goodness he didn’t have that power at the tournament or the rest of them would have dropped.   
  
    “Get in,” Samurai X repeated, grabbing his weapons.   
  
    Cole tried to push himself up, chest still aching. Someone grabbed his arm and he glanced over to see Karlof. His friend pulled him to his feet, tugging his arm over his shoulder.   
  
    “Thanks,” Cole wheezed.   
  
    Everyone climbed into the vehicle, Camille offering a hand to help pull Cole up. He hated feeling this weak, but without breathing properly everything else was trying to shut down. He collapsed in the seat, not even flinching when the roof closed over them.  
  
    Samurai X drove without a word, no telling where they were going. Didn’t matter. He was an ally, so Cole would trust him for now.   
  
    “You good?” Camille put a hand on his forehead. “Look like you’re going to faint.”   
  
    “Fine,” he made himself sit up. He took a moment to breath, pushing past the tightness in his chest. “Hit just took a lot out of me.” One breath cut short. He coughed, not a short one either. It repeated over and over, bringing back the stabbing sensation in his lungs. When he glanced at his palm he caught a flash of blood, quickly hiding it in his lap.  
  
    Not that it mattered, he could see Neuro staring at him. He feared the man would tell the others, but instead he motioned for Cole to lean closer.  
  
    The earth ninja hesitated, but finally complied. Neuro’s touch was gentle, his palm resting on Cole’s temple. In seconds the pain vanished, his nerves more or less going numb to his surroundings, but not in a way that frightened him. The sensation made him sleepy.  
  
    “Get some rest.” Neuro said. “You need to recover.”  
  
    Cole would have argued but it was too late. His eyes drifted shut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gee I wonder who that mysterious biker woman was, we just don't know...


	4. Stems

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> People are stressin and I hate to say this but like, it's only gonna get worse before it gets better
> 
> speaking of I warn it in the tags vaguely but the body horror featuring plants starts showing up in this chapter so watch your step

    Zane had no way of easing his anxiety. He tried not to pester Pixal for updates, but he couldn’t help it. It had been almost a week and there was still no way of telling where Cole was or what he was doing.   
  
    The rest of the team seemingly moved on, getting back to their own projects. They asked after Cole, of course, but it’s not like Zane had much to tell them.  
  
    And now Pixal wasn’t responding, or at least she hadn’t all night. He tried again after waking up and still nothing.   
      
    The team wasn’t keen on the idea of rushing out to find them. They didn’t even know where to look. Zane was tempted to go out and do it anyway. There was  only so much dusting in the attic he could do to distract himself.  
  
    “Zane?”  
  
    Pixal’s voice put his whole system on alert and he straightened up. “Pixal? What’s going on? Why didn’t you respond? Is Cole alright?”   
  
    “A stealth mission went awry, but he is safe.”  
  
    Zane narrowed his eyes. “That does not answer my question. Is he injured? Have you found any solutions?”   
  
    She didn’t respond, taking far too long for Zane’s comfort.  
  
    “Pixal, please, is he hurt?”   
  
    “He... is not getting better.” She said. “And we have not yet found a solution.”   
  
    What? What did that mean? Not getting better from what? “Where is he? I can come and assist you if–”  
  
    “No.” Pixal said. “Zane... I am sorry, but you are the last person who should be here.”   
  
    He flinched. Pain flashed in his chest. “What? Why not?”   
  
    “I cannot tell you that.”  
  
    “Why not?” He didn’t intend to raise his voice but he did. Ice crystals formed around the handle of the duster. “Pixal, please, my teammate is in trouble and I don’t know why.”   
  
    “He is my teammate as well.” Her voice was short and she sighed. “I understand your frustration, and your concern, but please trust us for now.”   
  
    Zane’s shoulders dropped. His frustration hadn’t eased but there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t make her talk. He couldn’t find them.   
  
    “Is a teammate all he is to you?”  
  
    He blinked. What sort of question was that? “He is my teammate, my friend and my family. I do not understand why you’re asking this.”   
  
    “If you wish to help, I need you to heavily analyze how you feel about Cole. I am sorry I can’t give more details.” She paused. “I need to go. I will do my best to keep you updated.”  
  
    Zane didn’t reply, letting her leave without another word.   
  
    How he felt about Cole? Analyzing that could take hours. Would it actually help or was Pixal just giving him something to occupy his time.   
  
    Well, he should trust her. He returned to dusting while his system dug deep into his memory files.  
  
     _“So, you’re the new student, huh? My name’s Cole, and the top of this rock pile is my space, got it?”_   
  
\-----------------  
  
    Cole woke up smoother than he had in a long time. No major aches, not laying in a weird position, his eyes didn’t hurt from the light either. Not that it was very bright. He blinked a few times while he adjusted his gaze to take in his surroundings. It certainly wasn’t Karlof’s house. In fact it looked more like a storage room with some hefty crates and weapons hanging off the wall.  
  
    Cole sat up, feeling the surface of a training mat below him. Where was he?  
  
    “The Samurai X cave.”  
  
    He jumped at the voice. He didn’t even notice Neuro sitting in the room, hands in that position again, eyes closed.   
  
    “Uh, why are you always–”  
  
    “Sitting like this?” He opened one eye. “My powers require a lot of meditation. Otherwise I hear thoughts from all over. Imagine being stuck on an open phone line with ten or more people talking at once.”   
  
    Cole cringed and stood. He stretched his back, letting it pop. His chest still felt tight, but at least the pain was gone. Now he just had to keep it that way for a while.  
  
    “What are you doing–”  
  
    “In here?” Neuro finished the question again. “Monitoring your sleep, keeping your dreams clear, just in case.”   
  
    “Oh, thanks.” Cole rubbed his neck. “You didn’t have to do that.”   
  
    “Well we are friends, aren’t we?” Neuro gave him a smile.  
  
    “What time is it?”   
  
    “About eight thirty in the morning.”   
  
    “And why are we here?”  
  
    Neuro hesitated, his smile fading. “I... am not entirely sure. Samurai X said they had a reason but...”  
  
    Cole snorted. “What, you can’t just read their mind?”  
  
    He said it as a joke but Neuro shook his head. “No. They are not a being I can read.”  
  
    “Huh?”  
  
    “Whoever or whatever they are, I cannot read their thoughts.” He opened both eyes this time, keeping a careful watch on Cole. “Much like your nindroid.”   
  
    Cole froze. Samurai X wasn’t human? Or even serpentine? Then again that may explain why their voice changed. Nya mentioned that’s why she thought it was Skylor. If they were a nindroid it would make sense, right? But Cole didn’t know any nindroids that would–  
  
    Wait.   
  
    “Ah, is that who.” Neuro shut his eyes again. “If it is all the same to you I’m going to get some rest. Karlof is in the garage looking at their mech. Camille already left. She said we could call her if we needed her again.”   
  
    “Yeah, that’s fine. Thanks for your help.” Cole gave him a wave and headed out of the room. His limbs felt heavy, still recovering from shock.  
  
    Then again he didn’t have the facts. It was just a guess. It could easily be someone they didn’t know. Maybe there was some other variable he hadn’t thought of.  
  
    He stepped into the main room. Karlof was indeed wandering around one of the mechs, studying the structure. Samurai X was at the control panel, tapping away at the keys and moving images around on the screen. Cole looked up to see the faces of all the mages at the party with their types of magic listed below.   
  
    Samurai X glanced back, their helmet still on. “Good, you’re awake. I need details on what that woman told you about Ruta.”  
  
    Cole raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t realize you were helping us with this.”   
  
    The figure seemed to flinch, looking back at the screen. “Your friends told me about your mission. It’s my job to assist those who need my help.”  
  
    “Assist huh?” Cole stepped closer, holding his breath. “That always was your favorite word to use, wasn’t it Pix.”   
  
    Their hands froze on the keyboard. Cole didn’t say anything for a while. He just watched as they slowly stood up straight and reached for their helmet.   
  
    Pixal shook the metallic strands of her hair after she pulled it off. She looked over at him, but her gaze quickly shot to the side. “How did you figure it out so fast?”  
  
    “Neuro can’t read your mind. Made me suspicious at least. That, and you never verbally responded to my distress call. And then Samurai X suddenly shows up?” He smiled at her. “Odd for you to be careless.”   
  
    She huffed, putting the helmet on the keyboard and moving more hair away from her face. “I planned to tell you anyway. I figured it was foolish of me to lecture you about secrets when I have one of my own.”   
  
    “But why keep it a secret?” He crossed his arms. “Pretty sure everyone would be ecstatic to have you back. And don’t tell me that nonsense of protecting your loved ones like you told Nya. You don’t have any enemies that we don’t already have.”   
  
    Her fingers tapped at they keyboard without actually pressing anything. “Nya told me once, about why she started all of this. Because her brother would not allow her to participate in your adventures, so she took matters into her own hands.”   
  
    Cole’s shoulders dropped. “You–”  
  
    Pixal continued. “I like assisting all of you. I like helping you on your missions. But staying in the background data mining felt useless at times. Like I could be doing more. My system is more than capable of running your computers and all of this at the same time.”  
  
    Cole looked around the room, almost feeling dizzy. Pixal could run all of this, with just her mind, and also tell them what was on the grocery list without a second thought.   
  
    “But why not tell us?”  
  
    Pixal swiped her hand across the keyboard. All the files she had opened moved to the side. “I do not know if you’ve noticed, but Zane is rather protective. Perhaps it is a result of having to lose his father twice, we never discussed it.” She crossed her arms. “That along with dealing with me being taken apart... I was sharing his head, remember? I know he is frightened of losing anyone. By the time I got the idea I had no way of knowing how he’d react.”  
  
    Cole frowned. “I think you should tell him.”  
  
    “Perhaps I will.” Her gaze snapped over. “If you do.”   
  
    “Pix, I can’t–”  
  
    “You can. He is still frightened. I just spoke with him. You are in danger and you have forbidden his assistance. He does not even know why.”   
  
    Cole backed up and looked away. His chest was getting tighter again, but if it was from the plant or his own emotions he didn’t know. “You know why I’m not telling him.”  
  
    “That does not mean I agree with it. Perhaps all of this would be over sooner if you did.”  
  
    “He doesn’t feel the same way.”  
  
    “You don’t know that.”   
  
    “He has you.” Cole threw out his arms and gestured to all the machines. “You and all your... unbelievable ability to run all of this at once, and your smarts, and your humor and...” He let out a long breath. “Of course I’m out of my league. I’m just the weirdo who keeps eating all the food he makes and teasing him just to keep him out of his own head.” He ran a hand down his face. His heart rate was picking up again. Maybe he should at least contact Zane. Talk to him for a minute. Calm the nindroid down. He didn’t want Zane fretting about this. That sort of panic was what he wanted to prevent.   
  
    “Cole.”  
  
    And god, Cole missed him. It’d hadn’t even been a full week but it felt like ages. He wanted to hear Zane laugh again, prattle on about a recent audio book he’d been listening to, hum nonsense music while he cooked, stand out in the yard of the temple wishing that it would grow more flowers. Sunflowers, he always said. He wanted more sunflowers.   
  
   _“My father was fond of them, or the seeds at least. They remind me of him... they remind me of you too.”_   
  
    Pain ripped through his chest and the memory. It wasn’t roots this time, couldn’t be. Something ran straight from his sternum to his throat. Cole tried to scream, couldn’t. Instead he just hit the ground, nails digging into his collar to try and ease the pain.   
  
    “Cole!”   
  
    Pixal’s hand was on his shoulder. Karlof’s boots thudded against the floor as he ran over.   
  
    Cole squeezed his eyes shut. Tried to push past the pain. He felt the oncoming tears and that just made it worse. As if he needed to cry on top of the rest of this.  
  
    “Karlof,” Pixal said. “Go get Neuro.”  
  
    “No need.”   
  
    Cole managed to open one eye to see the master of the mind rushing into the room. He tried to push himself to sit up, not that it worked. Pixal gripped his shoulder and pulled him onto her lap. Her hand on his cheek felt familiar.  
  
    But his thoughts went mute when Neuro touched his forehead. Once again everything went numb.   
  
    “Cole, you need to keep your mind clear.”  
  
    He snorted. “Easier said than done.”   
  
    “Um,” Karlof spoke up. “What is that?”   
  
    Cole’s eyes flittered open as the sensation returned to his nerves. He looked at Karlof, following his finger to a spot on Cole’s collar bone.   
  
    The end of a vine was sticking out of his skin.  
  
    The rush of fear and panic brought out a wave of nausea. His hand flew over his mouth as he shoved himself up. He had to get out of here.  
  
    Pixal called after him as he sprinted toward the exit. It wasn’t easy. His lungs still didn’t work to the fullest, probably wouldn’t until this was gone. Still, he didn’t slow down, not until he was out in the wasteland, gripping on one of the skeleton’s rib bones for support.   
  
    He made the foolish mistake of glancing back at the plant and couldn’t keep himself from puking on the dusty ground.   
  
    He kept using the bones for support, his legs shaking too much to stand on their own. Everything felt like it was spinning. He couldn’t get his heart to calm down.   
  
    “Cole,” Pixal’s hand was back on his shoulder. “Are you alright?”  
  
    No, of course he wasn’t. Everything about this situation was terrible. This curse was eating him faster than he thought and he didn’t have any answers. He never felt farther from his teammates. He was _dying_. He was...  
  
    “Pix,” his voice cracked and he cleared his throat. “I’m scared.”   
  
    Her other hand reached past him to turn him around as she pulled him into a hug. Had she always been this tall? He didn’t dwell on it now, it worked to his advantage as he rested his head on her shoulder.   
  
    “We are here to help you. We’ll find a solution.” She pushed him back but kept a grip on his arms. One of her hands moved to cover the plant on his chest. “Let’s find a cover for this, and then plan our next move.”   
  
    Cole took a deep breath. At least he stopped shaking. “We have a next move?”   
  
    She nodded and lead him back into the base. “Karlof and Neuro agreed to... question a few of the mages who might help. In the meantime you and I will be going to Chen’s island.”   
  
    “You gonna be okay with that? I doubt you have fond memories of the place.”   
  
    Her gaze was distant, fixed on the ceiling. “Do not worry about that. I managed it before and I will manage it again.”   
  
    “But do we even know where to look when we get there?”  
  
    “Do not worry about that either. I know the perfect person to assist. Now come this way, I keep medical supplies in the jet.”   
  
    Cole glanced up where the plane hung before looking down again. Pixal’s hand still rested on his chest, and somehow that was enough to keep him from panicking.   
  
\------------------  
  
    “A crush on Zane, huh?” Skylor leaned back in her seat on the jet. “Seems like an odd thing to take advantage of.”  
  
    “Ask the crazy mage, not me.” Cole muttered, hoping they could change the subject.  
  
    Him and Pixal had gone to the noodle house, making sure it was clear of their other teammates first. While it wasn’t certain Skylor would assist them with looking around the island, she agreed. Something to get her out of the work lull she was in.   
  
    Now the three of them were on the way. With Pixal flying that left Cole to explain the situation.   
  
    “I can’t make promises Clouse had anything you can use.” Skylor frowned. “But I can show you where to find it.”   
  
    “I’ll take anything at this point.” Cole kept running his hands through his hair, trying to avoid crossing his arms. Whenever he did he became hyper aware of the gauze taped to his chest and what it was hiding.   
  
    “You sure I can’t tell Kai anything?” She held up her phone. “He’s been worried sick, texting me non-stop about the fact you’re missing.”  
  
    “You can tell him you’re helping, if it makes him feel better, but I’d rather none of them know where we are.”   
  
    Skylor just shrugged as she typed out a text.   
  
    Cole honestly didn’t know Skylor that well. He’d fallen out of the tournament pretty early and hadn’t got much chance to speak to her while fighting her father. After she took over the noodle house, Kai was the only one who frequently went out to see her.   
  
    Yeesh, how disconnected had Cole become over the years? All these allies and he rarely went out to see them.  
  
    If he survived this, he needed to change that.   
  
    “We’re coming up on the island.” Pixal said. “I am analyzing the area to see if anyone else is here, but I suggest we proceed with caution.”   
  
    “Wouldn’t surprise me if someone tried to take advantage of it.” Skylor put away her phone and sat up. “My dad had a pretty loaded estate.”   
  
    Yeah, wasn’t that the truth. Cole still remembered the size of the building, not to mention the fact they all had a custom room. That didn’t even cover the underground prison and whatever was going on in the woods.   
  
    The whole place brought back bad memories as they landed in the yard in front of the palace. Without anyone tending to it, the plants had overgrown. The grass was tall, vines creeping up all the walls and pillars. Some even crowded in front of the door.  
  
    The sight of that made Cole feel sick again.  
  
    Pixal cut through them with ease, pushing the door open. The building was dark, sunlight showing just how much dust was drifting around. Everything smelled stale, old, and almost like a rat had climbed in and died.   
  
    As if this place couldn’t get more unsettling.   
  
    “Ugh, if I didn’t hate this place so much I might consider taking it back.” Skylor kicked at the rug as she lead the others inside.   
  
    Cole shrugged, gaze darting around to check for movement. “You could always tear it all down, build something new.”   
  
    “Sadly just being on this island reminds me.” She sighed. “Maybe I can sell it to some guy trying to build a theme park.” Then she shook her head, her pony tail swinging side to side. “No, this land is probably cursed. Come on, Clouse’s study is going to have anything we need.”   
  
    The group headed up the steps to a hidden door, which lead to more steps. Cole and Pixal kept scanning the surroundings. Pixal kept her sword out at all times. Her helmet was on right now, making it hard to tell what she was thinking.   
  
    Skylor shoved open the double doors to Clouse’s study. The room was crowded with shelves, books and scrolls. In the center was a stand, likely for a bigger book, but it was missing now. No doubt the one Nya found the Anacondrai spell in.   
  
    Cole looked around for a moment. “Uh, did he have any kind of organization system?”  
  
    “If he did I don’t know it.” Skylor sighed and rolled up her sleeves. “Come on, we better get digging.”  
  
    They all took different shelves, digging through text after text. Cole couldn’t even read some of the scrolls, setting them aside for Pixal to look at. So many of the books were more about casting curses than about fixing them. He only found one that listed ways to eliminate a curse, but none of them were related to what he had.   
  
    When he got to the end of one he picked up the scrolls, heading over to check if Pixal could read them. He found her with her helmet off, staring at sheets of paper in a folder. Cole looked at them, seeing photographs stapled to some of them of locations in and around Ninjago. It was the studio Jay used to work at and even the logging area where Cole had been.   
  
    He looked back at her. “Pix?”   
  
    She blinked, as if breaking out of a trance. “Ah, my apologies. What is it?”  
  
    “You okay? What is all that?”   
  
    “Information, on all of you.” She turned back a few pages. “A lot of it they... got from me.”   
  
    Cole felt sick again, remembering Zane telling him what happened to Pixal as they slipped out of the underground tunnels.   
  
    “God, Pix, I’m sorry.” Cole put the scrolls on the closest table.   
  
    “There is no need to apologize.”   
  
    “Yes there is. Zane died, you went missing, and none of us even thought to look for you. We were all too wrapped up in our own self loathing.” He looked back at the paper, almost dizzy by the amount of text on the page. “Maybe if we bothered to find you we could have saved Zane that much sooner as well. You were part of our team too and we just... did nothing.”   
  
    “Cole,” Pixal closed the folder and touched his shoulder. “I appreciate the apology, but do not dwell on it. We all made it out. Besides, it was selfish of me at the time to behave like I was the only one who missed him.”   
  
    “Well you and him were–”  
  
    “How long have you liked him?” Pixal picked up one of the scrolls. “You do not have to share details.”   
  
    “Uh, since I found out he could cook.”   
  
    Pixal laughed, and smiled, and Cole realized how long it’d been since he heard that. “Sadly that is the one thing I will not be able to relate to.”  
  
    “Shame, you should talk to Borg about making it so androids can eat. Does he know you’re out doing this?”  
  
    “Yes, it felt wrong to keep it from him. He always encouraged me to make my own decisions.” She moved on to the next scroll but quickly shut that one. “He assisted me in building my equipment.” Next scroll, she scanned this one longer before shutting it as well. “You regretted it, didn’t you? Not telling him how you felt after he died.”  
  
    Cole shifted, trying to follow Neuro’s advice and keep his head clear. “I mean, yeah.”  
  
    “So why not tell him when you got him back?”   
  
    “I almost did.” Cole admitted. “I was so close, then I told myself it wasn’t the right time trying to escape a tunnel. Then I told myself we were too busy stopping an army and then... I don’t know.”   
  
    “You should tell him.”  
  
    Both of them turned to see Skylor peeking out from one of the shelves.   
  
    “Yeah, everyone’s telling me that.”  
  
    “I’m serious.” Skylor held up a book. “I might have some details on what kind of spell we’re dealing with and uh... it’s not looking easy.”   
  
    Cole ignored the nausea in his stomach and the itch on his chest as they headed over. Skylor opened up to the page she marked, showing it to them.   
  
    “Apparently there’s a lot of ways to apply a victims feelings to a curse. Anger, sadness, frustration, whatever.” She turned the page. “It only gets stronger because of those feelings.”  
  
    “Well I gathered that much.” Cole picked at the gauze before snapping his hand away.   
  
    “Sure, but trying to ignore it is just making it worse. Your feelings end up more intense. Even if Zane doesn’t feel the same way, your silence is why it’s moving so quick.”  
  
    Was that really the case? Cole didn’t want to believe it, because he honestly didn’t know if he had the courage to confess right now. “Is there nothing in there about stopping it?”   
  
    Skylor sighed, flipping a few more page. “I tried to find something but there’s nothing we could use. I mean, it details ways to remove it but...”  
  
    “Doing so removes the emotion as well.”   
  
    Skylor sighed. “Yeah.”   
  
    Cole groaned in frustration, his nails scratching against his scalp. Pixal gripped his shoulder to calm him down.   
  
    “Relax, we have not dug through everything. Let’s keep looking.”   
  
    They all split up yet again. Cole moved onto another shelf, though most of it was encyclopedias for spell ingredients. What they were, where to find them, hardly any of it helped much. He did at least take a moment to look and see if there was anything about magic seeds, but none of them sounded like the cause of his curse.   
  
    It couldn’t really be hopeless, could it?   
  
    Putting the book away he tugged out another one. This one was a sketchbook, a series of sketches done for machines, weapons, equipment, and more.  
  
    Cole turned to the most recent page. His blood went cold. He might not understand most of the technical jargon but he certainly recognized Zane’s name.   
  
    The hell? There were plans to build Zane into a weapon? If Cole hadn’t gotten him out soon enough, what would have happened?   
  
    He didn’t want to toy with that thought, knew he shouldn’t. He slammed the book shut and put it back on the shelf. They got Zane back. He was fine. He was safe.   
  
    But what if they hadn’t?   
  
    No more fancy pies, or adorable pink aprons, or an interjection of statistics when they’re never needed. Couldn’t have watched him discovering all his new gadgets, yell at Jay for messing with his voice, insist to Cole that he just discovered the funniest joke.   
  
    They were usually awful, but Cole always laughed anyway, if only to see Zane smile.   
  
    He loved Zane, after all.   
  
    Cole’s heart stopped when he realized that thought crossed his mind.  
  
    Too late.  
  
    There was the pain yet again. By now he was almost numb to it, forcing himself to stay calm and push through it. Think of something else, something where Zane wasn’t involved. Not that it was easy, the nindroid was such a regular part of his life by now.  
  
    The skin on his chest stung, like something small was trying to bite him. He put his hand to it, feeling something move under the gauze. He glanced down, seeing vines sprouting out from three more places.  
  
    He jumped back, slamming into one of the shelves, as if he could somehow run away from them. That sound had Pixal and Skylor rushing over, asking if he was okay, but there was no way to respond. He was coughing again, and this time he could feel something lodge it’s way into his throat. He had to cough even harder to get rid of it.   
  
    Finally it worked. Pixal’s hand was on his back as he took in as much air as he could manage.   
  
    “Uh, is that a morning glory?”  
  
    He glanced over to see Skylor pick something up off the floor. It looked like petals, would have been blue in color if not for the blood smeared on the edges. Cole wiped his mouth to find some of it surrounding his lips.   
  
    “Knowing the plant might help narrow down our search.” Pixal pushed Cole back, more or less telling him to sit still. “I am going to get more supplies from the jet. I will be right back.”   
  
    Cole didn’t get a chance to argue. Pixal was up and dashing out of the room. He spared a glance at the plants in his chest but all to soon snapped his head back. He fixed his gaze on the ceiling before resting his arm over his eyes.   
  
    “Yeah,” Skylor sat next to him. “I have to say that looks pretty freaky.”  
  
    Cole huffed. “Imagine how I feel.”  
  
    “Sorry,” he could hear her smile. “But this is kind of what I meant about you not talking about it.”  
  
    “He’s not even around.” Cole groaned. “Why can’t I keep him out of my head?”  
  
    “Because you love him, duh.”   
  
    He peeked out from under his arm. “What? Are you telling me you think about Kai all the time?”  
  
    Her gaze moved away as her smile dropped. “Not all the time, but a lot.” She drew her knees closer. “Specially the fact that he stuck around. He didn’t have to, you know. I did nothing but take advantage of him. Figured he’d be too mad about that to keep trusting me.”   
  
    “He can be a hothead, but I haven’t known him to hold grudges.” Cole dropped his arm but kept staring at the ceiling. “His sister, on the other hand...”  
  
    Skylor laughed. “Yeah, I heard about her hunt for Samurai X. Pixal hasn’t told the rest of the team, I take it?”  
  
    “Not really, I guess that adds to the lists of reasons why she doesn’t.”   
  
    Both of them laughed this time, though Cole’s came out as more of a wheeze. Damn this plant. It was taking so much out of him just by being there.   
  
    “I’ll keep digging until Pixal gets back.” Skylor squeezed his shoulder and stood. “Hang in there, alright? And I can talk if you need a distraction.”  
  
    “Thanks,” Cole mumbled. He felt like he was saying that a lot lately. Being weak like this was frustrating, but he didn’t have a choice. If he tried to do this on his own he would have gotten nowhere.   
  
    He focused on the sound of rustling paper to keep himself calm.  
  
\-------------------  
  
   _“I know it’s rough Zane, trust me. I... I told you what happened to my mom, right?”_   
  
    “Zane?”  
  
    A voice that wasn’t a part of his memory startled Zane. He quickly shut down the playback, glancing around the attic. How long had it been? He completely lost track of time.   
  
    “Yeesh, you haven’t been dusting all day, have you?” Kai finished coming up the ladder, lighting a flame in his palm to get rid of the dark.   
  
    “Ah, no, I was analyzing something.” Zane blinked a few times, adjusting his vision. “Is something going on?”  
  
    “Well Jay was getting worried that you’d run off.” Kai tried to smile. “But uh, Skylor texted me earlier. She was guiding Cole on her father’s island to look for information.”   
  
    “Do we need to go?”  
  
    “No need, they left.” Kai’s gaze dropped to his phone, his eyes going distant. “Said they didn’t find anything that could help.”   
  
    Of course not. Day after day the situation got worse and worse. Pixal was at least telling him that much by now. Ah, Pixal, had she tried to contact him? Zane didn’t see anything in his history.   
  
    “Perhaps I should go find this mage and ask her myself.”  
  
    Kai frowned. “As much as I’d like to do that, it’s not wise. Cole told us already that we heavily underestimated her. Even if he gave us details there’s no way of knowing what other tricks she has. We could end up with two cursed teammates instead of one.”   
  
    “Not if we surrounded her.”  
  
    He raised an eyebrow. “Uh, Zane, how messed up does this situation have you?”  
  
    “I do not know what you mean.”  
  
    “It’s super unlike you to charge into a situation without having a plan.”  
  
    “Cole could be dying.”  
  
    “I... yeah I know but...” Kai sighed. “Look if you are going to do something crazy just let me know so I can help.”  
  
    “I am only considering it, for now.”  
  
    Kai nodded and raised his hands in surrender, the flame going out. The fire ninja turned around and headed back down the ladder, shooting Zane one more worried glance.  
  
    The nindroid was considering it, but he couldn’t right this second. He still had a lot of data to analyze. Pixal said it would help. He had to cling to the hope that the answer was in here somewhere.   
  
    So he brought up the playback again, of Cole standing next to him in that frozen forest roughly a week after his father passed away. Zane didn’t have a good reason for being there, just clinging to old memories.   
  
_“I told you what happened to my mom, right? That... that I lost her, a few months before Wu found me actually. I didn’t know how to deal with at the time, I guess I still don’t. Uh, my point is that I get it. You don’t have to deal with this by yourself, you know?”_   
  
    Cole had clearly been freezing out in the snow, but stubbornly stood there, watching Zane. He’d always been like that, it seemed, since they actually became friends while training under Wu. He may not have been the best at emotional support, but always hovered nearby, just in case someone needed something.   
  
    At the time Zane only nodded. Perhaps he should have said something. Asked what Cole’s mother was like. What happened to her? Had he ever spoken to anyone about it? Had anyone even offered to listen?   
  
    No wonder the earth ninja insisted on doing everything by himself.  
  
    Zane sighed and temporarily ended the playback. He should get out of this attic, take a break, continue it later. He would have hoped by now that he had a more concrete answer to Pixal’s question, but he didn’t.  
  
    How _did_ he feel about Cole?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's self indulgent but I like to think Cole knew who Samurai X was before season 8 
> 
> (funfact, I picked Morning Glories for a handful of reasons)


	5. Leaves

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting it kinda early due to plans for the day
> 
> U know there's three parts in this fic where I struggled because I was too emotional to deal
> 
> This chapter contains probably the worst of them (for me)
> 
> So uh, have fun

     Cole sometimes wondered who the worst person to argue with was. At first it had been Wu, because he was their teacher after all. Then it was Zane with his fast answers and sharp tongue. Then Jay who would mostly just scream your ears off. Or perhaps Nya, whose stubbornness was enough to make her hotheaded brother back down.  
  
    But nope, the answer was now Pixal. Pixal did not let you win arguments. It didn’t matter what facts or information you came up with, she’d stare you dead in the eye and repeat herself.  
  
    That’s how Cole ended up curled up in the back of the jet as she flew it toward the temple. After finding nothing else of use in Clouse’s study they had no choice but to move on. Skylor took a handful of materials with her, saying she’d comb through it just in case. By now they’d dropped her back off in Ninjago city.  
  
    Pixal hadn’t said a word after the argument. Cole was quick to figure out that Pixal not saying anything meant she had nothing nice to say.   
  
    The gauze got excessive. In the end Pixal put bandages over his chest, insisting that he not pick at it. It wasn’t comfortable by any means. It made everything itchier, and every time he inhaled he could feel it press against his skin.   
  
    Sitting still for this long he tried to analyze where the plant was by now. He realized he could feel something curling through his forearms. He almost threw up again.   
  
    To make his nausea worse, Neuro and Karlof reported back in. Essentially, if those were truly the stipulations that Ruta put on the spell, there was no going around it. Counter curses were always listed when the spell was cast. If Zane didn’t return his feelings, or if Cole didn’t get it removed, he was done for.   
  
    And then Pixal was demanding he go back to the temple, and he had only one guess as to why.   
  
    The jet slowed down to a hover. Cole glanced around and out of the cockpit, seeing the temple floating above them. The floating island always looked like a dream during the sunset.  
  
    “Are you able to summon your dragon and fly the rest of the way?”  
  
    He glanced at Pixal who wasn’t looking in his direction.  
  
    “And what if I said no?”  
  
    “Then I will risk dropping you off myself.”  
  
    “Why are we here, Pixal?”  
  
    She turned around. “Because we are running out of options, and we are running out of time. The easiest solution to this is for you to talk to Zane.”  
  
    Cole gritted his teeth and curled up on the seat. “You don’t know that’ll work.”  
  
    “You don’t know that it won’t.”   
  
    By this point the idea of Zane liking him back was just a fantasy, even more so than it had been years ago. Was that because of how their relationship developed or was it his own pessimism.   
  
    Everything about the situation felt hopeless, and Cole was too afraid to hope in a dream only for it to fall apart.   
  
    “Cole, please.” Pixal’s tone shifted as she stared at him. “I do not want to lose you.”   
  
    That made his chest ache and his arms tightened. “I know Pix I just... Why don’t you just tell him?”  
  
    “I will only do that if necessary. I think it would mean more to hear it from you.” She looked straight ahead again. “Besides, you better understand your feelings for Zane than I do.”   
  
    Yeah, it would need to be more than just an “I love you” wouldn’t it. Zane would probably assume Cole meant it in a platonic sense.   
  
    Cole wasn’t ready for this in the slightest, but he didn’t have much of a choice. If he didn’t fly up to the temple Pixal would kick him out anyway.   
  
    They were out of options and almost out of time.  
  
    “We will keep searching in the meantime.” Pixal assured him. “Hang on as long as you can.”   
  
    “Well it hasn’t killed me yet.” Cole stood as she opened the cockpit. The night air always felt so nice up here, cool and gentle, although it would get freezing in the winter. He scanned the sky, stars appearing on one end of it while the sun continued to set on the other. It was so low by now all that was left was a sliver of burning orange.   
  
    Cole took a deep breath of the fresh air before he jumped from the jet. His dragon quickly formed underneath him, flapping its wings to bring them up.   
  
    He landed near the back of the temple, hoping no one knew he was there just yet. Not like putting it off would make it any easier. He wandered over to the mostly empty flower bed, apart from the weeds the group had let grow there.   
  
    He picked at his bandages, wondering if he’d ever related to the earth this much.   
  
    Footsteps made him jump. He moved back and pressed himself against the wall. Maybe whoever it was would just turn around and leave.  
  
    The blue glow in the low light gave it away before Zane ever stepped into view. Those eyes were distant, focused on something past the horizon. The nindroid turned on his heel and kept walking, as if he was circling around the temple.   
  
    The colors of the sky were reflecting on his exoskeleton, even the touch of orange in the distance. Cole couldn’t stop himself from sighing.   
  
    The sound alerted Zane who jumped and froze. His head snapped to the side with a click.   
  
    But his body relaxed when he saw Cole, although he still looked shocked.  
  
    “Cole?”  
  
    He leaned away from the wall, rubbing his neck, trying to be casual. “Uh, hey, sorry I–”   
  
    Zane practically crashed into him and his head almost hit the wall. The nindroid was hugging him, which honestly was rather unusual. At least, Zane was rarely the one to initiate a hug, much less like this.   
  
    Cole would normally appreciate it if the tightness in his chest didn’t remind him how dangerous that was. “Uh, Zane?”  
  
    The nindroid pulled back but kept gripping his arms. “Cole, I am so sorry.”  
  
    He blinked. “Huh?”   
  
    “It is no wonder you ran off to deal with this yourself.” Zane’s gaze lost focus, small streams of numbers slipping by. “I noticed during my analysis we haven’t been very supportive of you.”  
  
    He kept blinking. “What? What analysis?”  
  
    Zane snapped out of his trance. “Pixal told me if I wished to help I should analyze my feelings for you.”   
  
    Cole ignored the burning in his cheeks. “She what?”   
  
    “Although I still have not gone through everything. You just caught me in the middle of our time fighting Morro. We were not much support during your time as a ghost either, were we?”   
  
    “Zane, you’re losing me.” Cole put up his hands. “I don’t understand why you’re telling me this.”  
  
    The nindroid blinked and fixed his gaze on him. “That mage did something to you, and you ran off to deal with it yourself. I am apologizing because I now realize why you did.”  
  
    “What? Zane no. That has nothing to do with it I swear.”   
  
    “Please do not lie to me again, Cole.” Zane crossed his arms. “This is hardly the first time you’ve insisted on taking care of a problem yourself.”  
  
    He sighed. “Okay, yeah, but it’s not because I don’t think you guys are helpful or something. I know you’d drop everything to help out if I ask.”  
  
    “Then why not tell us what’s going on?” Zane paused and took a step closer. His gaze moved down to Cole’s chest. “What is going on?”   
  
    Cole opened and closed his mouth, not even sure where to start. Did he start with the bad news? The worse news? The possibly good news? Zane already seemed to be acting out of character and there’s no telling what it’d do.   
  
    “Um,” he bit his lip. “What was the result of your analysis?”  
  
    Zane frowned. “What?”  
  
    “The, how you feel about me, analysis.”   
  
    “I did not finish going over the data.” Zane narrowed his eyes. “Why does it matter?”  
  
    “Please just tell me, or give me your best answer.” He bit down harder, feeling the vines poking at his skin again, trying to move farther down his arm and his stomach. He prayed he didn’t puke again.   
  
    The nindroid kept frowning. “You are my friend and my family, Cole. I care about you very deeply and I want to help in anyway I can.”   
  
    Cole’s heart sank. Zane didn’t even hesitate, meaning he was sure, meaning the concept of romantic feelings hadn’t even crossed his mind.   
  
    This really was hopeless.   
  
    “Cole?” Zane noticed his silence. “What can I do to help?”   
  
    “You can’t.” His voice cracked as the words slipped out of his mouth.   
  
    Shock took over the nindroid’s features again. “What?”   
  
    “You can’t.” Cole repeated. “There’s nothing you can do.”   
  
    “There must be something. Some kind of solution. There always is.”  
  
    “Not this time.”   
  
    “You found a way to break out of your ghost curse.”  
  
    “Yeah, by chance.” Cole snapped back. His chest kept getting tighter and tighter, along with his throat. “Because some magic lunar eclipse happened to show up. What if it didn’t for another century? I don’t have the luxury of waiting that long this time. I... I’m freaking dying Zane.”   
  
    “There is always a way to break a curse.” Zane gripped his shoulders. “We just need to look in the right place.”  
  
    “We’ve been looking.” Cole mumbled. “We’ve found nothing and it’s just been getting worse and worse.”  
  
    “Then would it not be wiser for us to help you? I just need to understand what’s going on.”   
  
    Cole couldn’t. He couldn’t do that. Zane didn’t need to feel responsible for this. None of them did. But at the same time did it really matter? It wouldn’t make any of them feel better when the curse finally won.  
  
     _“I do not want to lose you.”_  
  
    Suddenly he felt dizzy at the realization of how many people this was going to effect. His team, the other elemental masters...  
  
    His father.   
  
    The memory of the man’s expression when Cole showed up at the house as a ghost flashed into his head. The wave of nausea only got worse from all the vines. He clutched his stomach, leaning against the wall for support.   
  
    “Cole?” Zane hung on tighter. Cole knew he’d be better off pushing him back, but all he could focus on was the contact. Zane’s metal was always so cold unless he activated his heating system, but Cole never minded. Not even after being a ghost. Everything had been so cold then, but at the same time he couldn’t feel anything else. At least now he could feel the pressure, the texture of metal against his skin, the difference between Zane’s strong grip on one shoulder while the other lightly touched his face.   
      
    If he died, would everything go numb again?   
  
    “Cole?”  
  
    Zane sounded frightened now, which finally snapped Cole out of his trance. When did he start crying? Why was he shaking so much? What kind of question was that, he knew the answer.   
  
    “Cole, please.” When did Zane get this close? “I... I’ve never seen you like this before. I don’t know what to do. What is going on?”  
  
    A sob escaped, although his inhale was caught up in a tangle of vines and who knew what else.   
  
    “I’m scared.” He choked out. “I don’t want to die again.”   
  
    Zane’s expression held an amount of fear Cole was pretty sure he’d never seen before.   
  
    So he hugged Zane, hiding his face, ignoring the sharp pain in his arms. This was a bad idea, of course it was, even more so when one of the nindroid’s hands slid through his hair. But damn it, if he was doomed anyway he should do this while he still could right?   
  
    “You know I would do anything in my power to help you, right?” When Zane held him his close Cole could feel the faint vibrations his voice created.   
  
    “What if it’s not enough?” Cole forced his lungs to stay in rhythm.   
  
    “I would still like the chance to try.”   
  
    He pulled back enough to look up at Zane. The nindroid was right, after all. Cole hadn’t even given him a chance. Maybe Zane hadn’t considered a romantic possibility because he assume Cole never felt that way.   
  
    Zane’s gentle touch moved to his face again, lightly removing tears as if he’d never seen them before. How could a man made of metal be this soft?   
  
    The stinging in his arms and stomach got worse. He knew he should let go but he didn’t dare. He didn’t want Zane to stop touching him. If he was never going to feel anything again he wanted this to be the last thing he remembered.   
  
    “Cole...”  
  
    His name might have been used as a question, but he had trouble focusing on anything but Zane’s eyes. He was so close he could swear he could feel the light coming from them.   
  
    For a moment he thought maybe he could say it. It felt like the words were trying to jump from his throat. He opened his mouth.  
  
   _I love you._   
  
    His air was cut off when the stabbing pain shot through all his nerves. Something dug through the muscles in his arms, the bones. It tightened around the base of his spine, squeezing so hard his vision went white.   
  
    “Cole?” Zane must have caught him before he hit the ground. Both of them were kneeling now. He only got a second to take in his surroundings before the pain returned. Something was lodged in his throat again and he had no choice but to cough it out.  
  
    But it was sharp, painful, and by the time it calmed down blood covered the palm of his hand. Tattered blue petals sat among the dark red stain.   
  
    There’s no way he had much time left.   
  
    He had to get rid of this.  
  
    “What is that?” Zane’s expression held the same fear from earlier. “Cole, what is happening to you?”   
  
    Cole didn’t answer that, trying to force himself up. “I need to go.”  
  
    “No.” Zane followed him, blocking his exit. “I will not let you run out there to face this on your own again.”   
  
    “This isn’t your problem Zane.”  
  
    “My friend is dying, how is this not my problem?”   
  
    “Because it’s not. You don’t need to feel responsible for this.” Cole held his sob back. “You can’t blame yourself for this going sideways. It was my fault. I stupidly thought I could fight that mage on my own. I... It was my fault. I can’t stand the idea of you or anyone blaming yourself for it.”   
  
    “Then at least tell me what’s going on.” Zane grabbed him again. Cole felt something in his shoulder snap. He gritted his teeth either out of irritation or pain. “What is happening to you? What is hurting you?”  
  
    “You are!”   
  
    Cole’s breathing stopped and his stained hand flew up to cover his mouth.   
  
    He didn’t mean to say that.   
  
    Zane’s grip went slack, his gaze completely distant like he was trying to prevent a programming error. Maybe he was.   
  
    Cole took his chance and bolted to the edge of the temple grounds. Zane was quick to snap back to reality, shouting after him. Cole could hear the nindroid not far behind him.   
  
    But he didn’t slow down. He jumped off the edge, hoping he at least had enough control to summon his dragon. He did, the beast already flying down toward Ninjago city the moment it appeared.  
  
    But the roar of another dragon made him glance back. Zane was still chasing him, the nindroid’s determination reflecting in the dragon’s eyes.   
  
    “Come on girl,” he rested his hand on the dragon’s back. “I need you to fly faster than you’ve ever flown before.”   
  
    The beast shot through the sky so suddenly Cole almost lost his grip. He ducked down to keep the wind from battering his skin.   
  
    He had to run. He had to find a place to hide. And when Zane was off his trail he knew where he needed to go.  
  
    Cole reached up behind his ear and grabbed his communicator. He remembered Pixal asking him to keep it nearby, to not do anything reckless.  
  
    “Sorry.” He crushed the device in his grip and got ready to land. He’d need a lot of stealth to stay hidden from a nindroid.   
  
\--------------  
  
    “Cole?” Zane’s system was still on the fritz from earlier. He’d been close on the earth ninja’s trail, but his dragon vanished at some point after turning a corner. Zane tried to scan the area for him or his communicator, but he couldn’t come up with anything.   
  
    His head was having so much trouble processing anything.  
  
    He’d never seen Cole like that. The ninja had been nervous before, of course, but he’d always laugh it off. He’d make a joke, insist that the problem was never as bad as it seemed. It was why he had his title. It was why the team always turned to him for support.   
  
    To see the person even he himself leaned on fall apart like that... Zane didn’t know what to do.   
  
    He would have done anything, but Cole kept refusing, and he still didn’t know why.  
  
    His fear and anxiety kept swarming alerts into his head until it all shifted into anger. He wouldn’t find Cole like this. He needed help, he needed to know what was going on.  
  
    And he knew just who to ask.   
  
    His dragon shot back into the sky, headed right for the temple and more importantly the Destiny’s Bounty. Zane didn’t hesitate to jump off onto the ship, rushing into the control room.  
  
    His hands slammed against the keyboard when he spoke up. “Pixal? If you can hear me I need you to respond now.”   
  
    The screen flashed. “Zane? What is going on?”  
  
    “Where is Cole?”  
  
    “Is he not there?”  
  
    “No, he just ran off into the city. I lost track of him. Can you pinpoint his location?”   
  
    There was a pause. Zane watched as the system worked, drawing up maps, but after a while it stopped. “I... no. He must have destroyed his communicator. I will attempt to find him with the city’s security system.”   
  
    “What is going on?” Zane said as she kept working.   
  
    “Did he not tell you?”  
  
    “No! No matter how many times I asked he refused and I will not be kept in the dark any longer. Tell me what is going on.” He slammed his hands on the keyboard again. He knew he shouldn’t be getting this angry, but it felt like everything was falling apart. He hated being this helpless and ignorant.   
  
    Pixal was silent for a moment. “I... I promised Cole I would keep it a secret unless the situation was critical.”  
  
    Zane opened his mouth to shout again.  
  
    “However,” she continued. “It seems the situation has become critical.”   
  
    The ships alarm went off. Red lights flashed as the horn blared into the night air.   
  
    Within a minute the entire team flooded into the control room, including Misako. Jay was still covered in oil from whatever contraption he’d been working on.  
  
    “Zane?” Nya said. “What’s going on?”   
  
    “Is it Cole?” Lloyd asked.  
  
    “Yes,” Pixal answered. “Cole has gone missing, as of right now I am unable to locate him.”  
  
    “So we head out and find him.” Kai slammed his fist into his palm.  
  
    “No,” Zane crossed his arm and glared at the screen. “Not until we know what’s going on.”   
  
    Pixal was silent as she hid the maps on her screen. “As most of you are aware, Cole took on the mission of investigating the mage Ruta on his own.” She brought up an image of the toxic bogs. “We underestimated her magic. With the entire bog enchanted she captured Cole and cursed him.”  
  
    “Huh?” Jay spoke up. “Like, with the snake?”  
  
    “No,” Pixal brought up a picture of a morning glory. “She planted enchanted seeds in his chest. These seeds grow in response to his feelings.”   
  
    That word made Zane pause. He recalled what Pixal asked him to do, Cole’s behavior, the things he said. He tried to analyze all of it to find an answer. “What sort of feelings?”  
  
    Another pause. “His feelings for you, Zane.”   
  
    He blinked, still not entirely sure what that meant. Was there something specific about the way Cole felt toward him? He swore he heard Lloyd mutter a “knew it” but didn’t take the time to confirm it.   
  
     _“You are!”_  
  
    So that is what Cole meant. His feelings toward Zane were hurting him, and Zane probably just made everything worse.   
  
    “Cole was not comfortable telling all of you this. I aided him in seeking out a solution to the curse, but nothing we found was good. If the curse was placed with stipulations, those rules must be followed.”  
  
    “Meaning that Ruta already told him what could cure him?” Nya said.   
  
    “Yes.”   
  
    “Okay,” Jay added. “Then what is it?”   
  
    “Ruta can remove the curse, although doing so would destroy the feelings it’s attached to. The only other alternative was for... those feelings to be mutual.”   
  
    Someone behind Zane was whispering. He could feel all the eyes in the room on him. That statement only confused him more. What feelings did Cole possibly have that weren’t mutual, that the earth ninja decided weren’t mutual? That’s why he asked about Zane’s feelings, right? Only to follow it up by telling him that he couldn’t help.   
  
    “So what do we do?” Lloyd spoke up. “Obviously we need to find him but...”   
  
    Zane stared at the keyboard. “I cannot return feelings if I do not understand what they are.”  
  
    “Unfortunately, Cole would have to explain them to you.” Pixal’s screen went back to scanning security cameras.  
  
    “But he won’t. He refused.”  
  
    “You should go see Mistaké.” Misako spoke up. Everyone turned to look at her. “I know she has something that can help with this.”  
  
    “Assuming we can locate Cole.” Jay added.  
  
    “I will direct the ship to the tea shop.” Pixal said as the engine whirred to life. “In the meantime, I will continue to narrow down possible locations.”   
  
    “No need.” Zane said. “I know where he went.”  
  
    “Huh?” Jay stepped forward and leaned over to enter Zane’s field of vision. “You do?”  
  
    Of course he did. If what Pixal said was true there was only one place Cole would go. The earth ninja decided that if one way to cure the curse wouldn’t work, he was only left with one option.   
  
    “He’s going to the toxic bogs.” Zane pointed to the map. “He’s going to see Ruta.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's still two chapters to go asldfkjasdf


	6. Buds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woops this is a bit late, my bad
> 
> This has a happy ending I promise...

    When Cole got to the bogs he realized a few things. One, breathing was hard. He could barely manage it, so sprinting across the landscape was a no go. In fact, it felt like his chest didn’t even want to move.   
  
    When he peeked under the bandages he quickly understood why. His skin was turning rough, solid, it almost looked like the bark of a tree.  
  
    He quickly put the bandage back and ignored it before he got sick.   
  
    There was no way of telling if the size of the bog was due to his anxiety or the fact he never realized the size of it before. It didn’t help that so many landmarks looked the same, and with the acidic water he could only go in so many directions.   
  
    Ruta’s lair had to be near the serpentine tomb, right? That’s where he found himself eventually climbing out of after he got cursed.   
  
    Wandering around in the dark wasn’t getting him any answers. He took a rest, leaning against a tree and groaned in frustration. He should at least take a minute to catch his breath.   
  
    Then again, she found him last time. Maybe he could convince her to do it again.   
  
    “Ruta,” he tried not to shout but at least raised his voice. “If you can hear me you better come out.”   
  
    The bogs were by no means quiet at night. The chirps of frogs and insects rang through the trees. He could hear the occasional bubble in the water. He tried to keep his ear out for footsteps or possibly for that giant snake, but his eyes were drifting shut from exhaustion.   
  
    Something grabbed his arm. Cole tried to sit up, but suddenly he was pulled back and into the tree. He screamed as everything went black for a moment. Then, just as quickly as he was grabbed, he was thrown out. He rolled across the dirt, coughing from the impact. He could taste more blood on his tongue.  
  
    Cole glanced up and found himself in a different clearing. The plants surrounding it were flowering, small glowing insects jumping around them.   
  
    “Hello, Cole.”  
  
    He spun his head around. Ruta sat on a nearby stump that was covered in glowing mushrooms. That giant snake of hers was curled up behind her.   
  
    She must have been here a while. There was a book in her hand, still open as it rested against her leg.   
  
    “Were you wandering around long? You could have said my name so much sooner.” She returned to her book, turning the page.   
  
    “Don’t fuck with me.” He cringed as he forced himself to stand. “You can see the future. Some crazy lady who knows you told me that much.”  
  
    Ruta’s eyes went wide and she slammed the book shut in the process of folder her hands. “You saw Violet? Oh where? Ah, did you get in a fight? It’s a shame I can only see the future and not the past.”   
  
    “Don’t change the subject.” Cole wiped his mouth, realizing he was just smearing more blood.   
  
    “Yeesh, you’re looking awful.” Ruta put the book down and stood. “It’s moving even faster than I thought.”   
  
    “Get rid of it.”   
  
    She blinked, then again, then a third time. “Huh?”  
  
    “Get rid of it. You said you can, right?”   
  
    “Uh, yeah, but if I do–”  
  
    “I know. I don’t care.”   
  
    Ruta kept staring at him for a moment before her confusion shifted to irritation. “You didn’t tell him, huh?”  
  
    “I can’t.”  
  
    “Sure you can.” She threw out her hands. “I can write a script for you if you want. ‘Oh Zane,’” Ruta sat back on the stump, putting a hand on her chest and sticking one of her legs out. “‘You’re the love of my life. I can’t imagine living without you.’”  
  
    “I said stop fucking with me!” Cole stomped on the ground, shaking everything around them. He knew he shouldn’t be wasting his power, especially not when he could barely breath. “You can see the future. You knew this would never work. But I’m not putting my team through that, or my father, or Zane.”   
  
    Her amusement fled her face again as she sat up straight. “And how do you think he’ll feel if you suddenly stop caring about him at all?” Her eyes glowed blue, almost the same color as the surrounding mushrooms. “Would you like to know?”   
  
    Cole’s heart thudded in his chest, which was starting to feel hollow. “Don’t.”   
  
    “Pixal no longer at his side and you no longer caring, I wonder who he’ll confide in.”   
  
    “Stop!” Cole tried to charge forward but vines snapped around his feet. Before he could push himself back up they wrapped around his stomach, keeping him on the ground.   
  
    “Would you like to know a secret, Cole?” Ruta stood up and walked over before crouching down in front of him.   
  
    “I don’t have time for that.”  
  
    “Oh, you do.” One of her eyes glowed again before she blinked. “There’s no such thing as fate.”   
  
    Confusion washed over Cole and he stopped struggling. “Huh?”  
  
    “Fate, destiny, whatever you like to call it. It’s not real. No future is set in stone.”  
  
    “That can’t be completely true.” He tried again to stand up. Normally his super strength would get him out of his situation, but his body was far too exhausted from the pain. “We had a destiny, there were so many others we came across. Everything about the fight with the Overlord was written out.”   
  
    Ruta tsked and rolled her eyes. “Yes, indeed, and I found out the history behind that as well. About my entire homeworld.” She stood up and threw her arms out again. “Oh, the great Cloud Kingdom. Where prophets are born and raised. Where people’s futures are written out. It’s all a great big sham.”   
  
    A nearby tree cracked when she snapped out the last word. Cole froze where he was.   
  
    “Think about it, Cole. You know the elemental powers are passed on through generations. You think Wu, who worked with all your ancestors in a previous war, didn’t know where you were? And Lloyd? Destined to be the green ninja? Of course he was!” She looked at the sky for a moment before shaking her head. “He’s the descendent of the first spinjitzu master. Of course he would inherit the golden power and defeat the Overlord. Anyone with half a brain would have figured that out.”  
  
    Cole felt the earth under him shake. He didn’t know if this was the time for it, but the conversation was a good distraction from his curse. “You’re from the Cloud Kingdom? Then how do you know all this?”  
  
    Ruta blew a raspberry. “As if _anyone_ grew up not hearing that stupid story. ‘Soon our true prophecy will come true. The reason we were granted this honor will come to pass.’”  
  
    He blinked, going over that phrase a couple of times. “Wait, what does that mean?”  
  
    Ruta spun on her heel, even more irritation on her face. “Fate isn’t real, Cole. Destiny is a load of nonsense. Fun fact–that I dug up because I’ve always been the nosy type–the parchment my people use is enchanted. Care to guess who gave them the spell?”   
  
    Cole’s jaw dropped.  
  
    “Yup, the good old spinjitzu master himself. I guess he was nervous that no one would be ready for some big battle that he couldn’t deal with himself.”  
  
    “But that prophecy was real.” Cole tried one more time to stand up, feeling a few of the vines snap. “Every bit of it came true.”  
  
    “Because you chose for it to.” Ruta kept pacing around, sprouts appearing behind her. “You chose to follow Wu. You chose to go to the Dark Island. Lloyd chose not to give up. At any point you could have chosen otherwise.” She sighed. “My people’s magic may allow their written word to sway the universe, but it still doesn’t set anything in stone.”  
  
    “So, what, you learned that and ran away?”  
  
    “No, I didn’t figure it all out until I wound up here on accident.” Ruta studied him for a while, her eyes flashing. “Rather jarring, really. Suddenly the future was full of possibilities, different paths. I realized that whatever my people were writing down was just the first vision they saw. Bit by bit your world is influenced because they’re all deluded.” She straightened up, glaring at nothing in particular. “I hate it.”  
  
    The vines around Cole retreated. He took the opportunity to get back at his feet, but didn’t risk charging at her a second time.   
  
    “Now they all think they can decide how the world goes. They don’t even bother to look at the possibilities.”  
  
    “So...” Cole rubbed his chest, feeling even through the bandages the bark had spread. “You didn’t know how this would turn out?”  
  
    “I see possibilities, but the results are up to you.” She shrugged.   
  
    “So, is there a possibility Zane returns my feelings?”  
  
    Ruta grinned at him as her eyes went blue again. “I’m not telling you that.”   
  
    Cole growled.  
  
    “Oh come on, Cole. Don’t you love things being unpredictable? Don’t you love the mystery of the future?”  
  
    “Not when my life is on the line.”  
  
    “Well, I guess that’s fair.” She kept smiling as she shrugged. “That is just me being mean, I suppose. Wanting to test new magic and all that.”   
  
    He clenched his fists, ready to make a move if necessary. “So this is just some game to you.”   
  
    “Uh, yeah, sorta. Sorry.” She didn’t sound sorry as she laughed. “But uh, do you seriously want me to remove it? Are you sure you’re okay with the consequences of that?”    
  
    No, he honestly wasn’t. Part of him didn’t want to think about how Zane would respond if Cole stopped caring about him. What possibly scared him more is that by that point he wouldn’t care enough to respond to that either.   
  
    Ruta began to walk toward him. Cole flinched and took a few steps back. She kept moving until his spin hit a tree trunk. He spared a glance at the branches until he saw Ruta creeping even closer.  
  
    “You don’t seem sure.” Her eyes were glowing blue again. It was strange, really, the color wasn’t that much different from Zane, but it didn’t make him feel safe at all.   
  
    “Zane...” Cole swallowed, feeling another loose petal. “Zane’s the only one I’ll stop caring about, right?”  
  
    “Are you still okay with that?” Her hand reached out and he flinched. Her fingers trailed from his throat to his chest.   
  
    Cole thought about Zane. He thought about how he felt toward Zane. He tried to remember a time that he didn’t, but he couldn’t anymore. It had been so long. That little flip his stomach would do whenever Zane would grin, or laugh, or hum would cease to exist.   
  
    But he was out of time.   
  
    Ruta tsked again. “Cole, you’re the master of earth.”  
  
    He blinked. “So?”  
  
    “So, act like it.”  
  
    Her hand pressed against his chest and suddenly he was being pulled backwards. It all went black until he was spat out somewhere else. The glow from the plants and bugs was gone. The shadows of the branches all looked the same. Where the hell was he?   
  
    Had Ruta removed the curse? He tapped against his chest to confirm that no, she hadn’t. Damn it. What kind of game was she playing now? Cole kicked the tree, as if that would solve his problem at all.   
  
    Then a flash of blue caught his eye. He turned to follow it, but it took him a few moments to figure out what it was.  
  
    Zane’s dragon landed in front of him, growling. Cole glanced up at it’s master, at those familiar blue eyes that were glaring back at him.  
  
    Ruta spat him out here on purpose.  
  
    Damn.  
  
    But there was nowhere to run now, if he was even capable of it. His shoulders were feeling rather stiff at this point.   
  
    The dragon vanished and Zane was quick to get close. There was something in his hand, a canteen?   
  
    “How did you find me?” Cole asked, shrinking away from the glare.   
  
    “When Pixal explained what was going on I knew you would come here. The team split up to locate you, but it seems I found you first.”  
  
    Yup, Ruta put him here on purpose. That bitch. She just wanted to have a laugh over all of this, didn’t she?   
  
    Cole sighed and rubbed his arm. “What did she tell you?”  
  
    “She told us that you were cursed, and the nature of it, that it was feeding on your feelings toward me.”  
  
    He cringed.  
  
    “She told us one of the cures was for the feeling to be mutual, however she refused to explain what those feelings were in detail.”  
  
    Well, that was a slight relief, but only so much. Judging by Zane’s expression, he wasn’t about to leave without an answer.   
  
    But then it softened as the nindroid held out the canteen. “Here.”  
  
    Cole took it, unscrewing the top and looking inside. The herbal scent almost made his nostrils burn. “What is this?”  
  
    “Mistaké said it would help.”  
  
    He couldn’t keep from narrowing his eyes at that. “The crazy tea lady? Making me a bit doubtful here.”  
  
    “Cole, please.” Zane frowned. “You do not want to die. I do not want you to die either. Just try it?”  
  
    Well, it couldn’t possibly hurt him anymore at this point. What did he have, hours? He could hear his shoulder creak when he took a sip of the tea, then a bigger one. He never even noticed how thirsty he was.   
  
    Of course, glancing back at the canteen he was reminded he still had blood smeared over his face. “Didn’t bring a napkin did you?”   
  
    “Ah, no, my apologies.” Zane smiled. “And I doubt the water here is safe to use.”   
  
    Cole found himself laughing, staring at the nindroid’s expression. “God, I love it when you smile.”   
  
    Wait, why did he just say that? His hand flew over his mouth again.   
  
    Zane blinked, a bit taken aback. “Oh? Well that’s good to hear.”  
  
    “Zane,” Cole’s voice shook. “What kind of tea is this?”  
  
    “She didn’t say.”   
  
    His stomach churned, because he knew. He knew exactly what this was. Now he’d already downed half of it and there was nowhere to run.   
  
    How was this supposed to help?   
  
    “Cole? Are you okay? The tea isn’t hurting you is it?”  
  
    “No,” he kept blurting out words. “It’s not the tea it’s this stupid plant. My skin’s already turning to wood.”  
  
    Zane looked horrified for a moment. “What? How... how much longer do you–”  
  
    “I don’t know, probably not long since I can’t get you out of my head.”  
  
    Cole snapped his jaw together. Shut-up, why couldn’t he just shut-up. His heart was racing despite its constraints. The blood roared in his ears.   
  
    Zane blinked a couple of times, clearly processing. “Cole... can you not lie right now?”  
  
    He cringed, trying to keep his mouth shut but to no avail. “No.”   
  
    Zane studied his face before he sighed. Now he was closer again, too close, his grip gentle on Cole’s shoulders. “I apologize, for taking advantage of this, but I need you to explain the rest of this curse. It’s the only way I can help you.”  
  
    “But you can’t.” Cole argued.   
  
    “I cannot return feelings if I do not know the nature of them.”  
  
    “If you don’t know then you can’t return them.” Cole argued back. “You can’t make yourself fall in love with someone, Zane.” Once again his hand flew over his mouth.   
  
    The nindroid looked more confused than ever. “What? But I do love you, Cole.”  
  
    He tried to smile and mentally kicked his fluttering heart. “Not like that Zane. Not like a friend, or a brother, or platonically like... how you feel about Pixal.”   
  
    That clearly didn’t ease Zane’s confusion and he straightened up. “My feelings for Pixal are always going to be different than my feelings toward you. Like my feelings toward you are different than my feelings toward Kai. Is love not something based on the individual?”  
  
    Cole snorted. If the situation wasn’t so intense he’d be amused by this argument. “Of course it is Zane but you don’t... you don’t love me like I love you. That’s the problem.”   
  
    “Then how do you love me?”   
      
    His whole body went stiff. He avoided Zane’s gaze, clenching his teeth again before the words spilled out of his mouth.  
  
    “Cole,” those gentle hands were on his face now, forcing him to look at the nindroid. “Do not be afraid.”    
  
    His heart was still racing but his muscles went slack. All he could focus his thoughts on yet again was the metal against his skin. “I love when you touch me.”   
  
    Zane raised an eyebrow. “Like this?” His finger ran across his forehead, pushing his hair away from his face.   
  
    “Like anything.” Cole reached up to hold one of his hands. “Always feels nice, safe, specially after that ghost phase, you know?” He risked moving closer, their foreheads bumping together. “Sometimes daydream that you’ll never have to let go.”   
  
    Zane’s hand ran from his cheek to his neck. “What else?”  
  
    Cole shivered at the contact, but he didn’t pull back. Even if he was aware the vines were moving to his wrists. “Love your eyes too, they’re freaking gorgeous you know, even if you like to use them to wake me up at ungodly hours.”  
  
    “Well,” Zane smiled. “It is either that or I playback an airhorn sound.”   
  
    Cole chuckled. “Love your sense of humor, even if it’s off sometimes. Even if the puns you make are god awful they’re still hilarious. I love your smile, your laugh. Love how you find joy in the simplest things.”   
  
    “You could do that to.” Zane pressed their foreheads together, and Cole thought for a moment if died right now that’d be okay.  
  
    “I do, sometimes, when I see you doing it. Or maybe I’m just smiling cause you are.” Cole risked reaching out, wrapping his arms around Zane. He could easily kiss Zane right now, wanted to, but he wouldn’t. “I didn’t appreciate it enough before that second fight with the Overlord.”   
  
    Zane’s eyes flashed and he blinked. “I...”  
  
    “You know, I almost told you all of this when I found you on Chen’s island. Kept being to shy about it, too scared.” He found himself laughing for some reason and he hid his face in Zane’s shoulder. “Master of Earth is too afraid to just admit a crush.”   
  
    “Cole?”  
  
    He tightened his grip. “Everyone kept telling me to just tell you when this curse started. Makes sense, but I couldn’t. I don’t want you blaming yourself.” Something was wrong with his head. Was it the tea or exhaustion catching up with him? He felt dizzy, yet at the same time like everything was perfectly clear. “You can’t blame yourself, okay? This isn’t your fault.”  
  
    “Cole?” Zane’s voice was laced with concern as he pushed him back at arms length. He looked terrified, glancing at him up and down. “Why... why can’t I read your heartbeat?”   
  
    Cole blinked, still feeling tired. He glanced down at his bandages, not noticing the wooden texture creeping over his shoulder. “Oh, huh, less time than I thought.”   
  
    “No.” Zane’s hands were on his face again. “There has to be some way to stop this. There has to be something I can do.”  
  
    Cole found himself smiling again. “Sorry Zane, sometimes... you just can’t. It’s okay.”  
  
    “It is not okay.” The nindroid’s voice kept changing pitch.   
  
    “You can’t make yourself feel something Zane.”   
  
    “But I don’t understand. I do love you. You mean the world to me. I’d do anything to keep you here. Why is that not enough?”   
  
    Cole’s voice cracked but he couldn’t seem to cry anymore. “I don’t know. I’m sorry.”   
  
    Zane seemed to be at a loss for words, his eyes flashing and glitching again. Perhaps his system was trying to process too much. Cole reached out while he still could, putting his hand on Zane’s cheek this time. Now he could feel how much the nindroid was shaking.   
  
    “You know,” Cole kept smiling even though he could feel the numbness moving down his arm. “As selfish as it is I’m glad you’re here. Glad I get to see you one more time.”   
  
    “Cole don’t...”   
  
    He could feel the rest of the air leaving his system. His body went rigid. “You really are the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen.”   
  
    He swore Zane was shouting his name, still holding his face, but everything had gone quiet and numb by that point. His vision was failing too.   
  
     _Sorry._ He wished he could at least say that one more time.  
  
     _Sorry for leaving you alone._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh ah... hmm that's... not good.......


	7. Blossoms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Promise it ends well I promise aslkdfj

    “Cole?” Zane’s vocal system was on the fritz, glitching in and out. It was no surprise given his emotional state. His system had threatened to shut down at least twice, but he couldn’t do that.  
  
    But what could he do?  
  
    Was it even Cole anymore?  
  
    His hands were still on his cheeks, but by now everything had turned to wood. Cole’s eyes were empty. His hand was still reaching out, hovering next to Zane.   
      
    The nindroid wished he could cry, but he lost that ability a long time ago. Instead he kept on clinging, praying it was some kind of nightmare despite the fact he couldn’t dream anymore.   
  
    This couldn’t be happening. It couldn’t be real.   
  
    Why wasn’t it enough?   
  
    His hands slid down to Cole’s shoulders, and his gaze fell further to a hollow dip in the center of his chest. Zane let his hand hover over it.   
  
    “Cole? Please...” As if begging would bring back his friend. He didn’t even get the time to analyze what Cole said, what it all meant.   
  
    Cole loved him, in a romantic sense, and Zane knew what that meant, but he’d always had trouble deciphering the difference between that and platonic love. Perhaps it was a trait of being a nindroid.   
  
    Why were his feelings not enough?  
  
    “Zane?” Pixal spoke up. “Did you locate Cole? The rest of the team hasn’t spotted him.”  
  
    He never reported in to her, did he? What was he supposed to tell her now?  
  
    “Zane? Is everything alright?”   
  
    “I’m sorry, Pixal. It wasn’t enough.”   
  
    He could practically feel her fear over the silent line. “What does that mean? Is Cole alright?”   
  
    “I’m sorry.” Is all he could say.   
  
    “...I am sending the rest of the team to your location.” He wasn’t sure if the crack in her voice was from her or his signal going on the fritz as well.   
  
    Everything felt like it was falling apart.   
  
    Like they had no ground to stand on.  
  
    Jay was the first to arrive, probably due to his dragon’s speed. As usual he seemed oblivious to the events until he actually got a good look at Cole in the low light. His canteen dropped from his grip and he almost backed into the acidic water.   
  
    Lloyd was next, foolishly using his power to light up the area only for the green energy to explode from shock. It must have made their location more obvious because Kai and Nya showed up a second later. Nya’s hands flew to her mouth and it seemed like she would have collapsed on the ground if not for Kai’s support, despite the fact it looked like he wanted to do the same.   
  
    Zane could almost swear by their faces this was familiar to them.   
  
    “What do we do now?” Jay’s voice was somehow steady in spite of his shaking, sparks jumping around his shoulders.   
  
    Zane looked back at Cole, hand still on his chest. “Nothing.” He said bitterly. “There’s nothing we can do.”   
  
    “We can’t just quit.” Lloyd said. “There has to be–”  
  
    “There’s nothing we can do!” Zane shouted, some kind of alert popping up in the corner of his vision. “It wasn’t enough. I thought I loved him back but it wasn’t enough.” He looked back at his friends. “Why wasn’t it enough?”   
  
    Jay seemed to shrink. “Because it’s not that kind of love Zane. It’s different.”  
  
    “Different how?” He kept shouting, although he didn’t know why. “How is it any different? I still care about him. I would still do anything for him. I still want him to stay by my side. It doesn’t sound different at all.”   
  
    “No,” Kai mumbled. “Not when you put it like that.”   
  
    “Maybe it’s cause nindroids aren’t interested in the smooching aspect.” Jay shrugged.   
  
    Zane didn’t mean to snap around and grab Jay’s collar, but somehow he was on autopilot. “What does that have to do with how you feel toward someone? The only reason I am not interested is because I do not feel things as you do.”   
  
    “So,” Nya put a hand on Zane’s arm, clearly trying to get him to let go. “If Cole had asked you to do that, would you?”  
  
    Zane straightened up, his grip going slack. Would he? He hadn’t even considered it for some reason. “I do not know. He did not ask.”  
  
    “But what if he had?”  
  
    Zane wandered back over to Cole, his hand resting on that empty slot again. “If it made him happy, I would have done it a hundred times.”   
  
    There was a long silence behind him. It almost made the air feel awkward.  
  
    “Yeah,” Kai growled. “I have no idea why the curse wasn’t lifted.” He ignited both of his hands. “I vote we find that swamp witch and turn her into a black stain.”   
  
    Honestly, the idea was tempting. Even if they didn’t know what she was fully capable of. He at least refused to leave things like this.   
  
    Cole didn’t want him to blame himself, but he couldn’t help feeling partially responsible for all this. Even after all these years, he still barely understood his own feelings.   
  
    Zane pressed their foreheads together, pretending Cole was still warm. “I’m sorry, Cole.” _Come back. Don’t leave me. I want you by my side. I love you._  
  
    Those thoughts went unspoken. He checked the line to see if Pixal was still active, not having heard a word from her this whole time. There was no way of knowing what she was thinking.   
  
    A loud crack snapped him back to attention. He stood up straight, trying to detect where it had come from. Then it sounded again, and again. He saw the wood on Cole move.   
  
    It was splitting apart.   
  
    “Oh no,” Jay said. “Th-that’s bad right? What’s going on?”   
      
    Zane didn’t know. He thought trying to use his ice to hold it together, but that would likely only make it worse, right?   
  
    The wood splintered faster and faster. Zane wasn’t sure if he could bare to see Cole fall apart a second time.   
  
    Then it exploded. Nya screamed from the sound and Zane flinched, blocking the splinters from hitting his face.   
  
    He heard a familiar cough.   
  
    His gaze shot back over to see Cole kneeling on the ground, coughing into his hand. Zane didn’t hesitate to dive onto the ground in front of him.   
  
    Cole stopped coughing and looked up. His eyes were wide. Something rested on his palm but Zane didn’t bother to look at it right now.   
  
    “Cole?” Zane touched his face, running a quick analysis for any remnants of plant life. “You... you’re alive?”   
  
    Cole didn’t respond for a while, staring at Zane like he couldn’t believe this was happening either. Then his empty hand reached out to grab Zane’s collar and jerk him forward.  
  
    The motion was interrupted when Jay tackled the earth ninja to the ground, screaming. “You asshole! We thought you were dead!”  
  
    “I was dead.” Cole tried to shove him back, but clearly wasn’t trying very hard. “I think so anyway, kind of fuzzy.”   
  
    In seconds the rest of the team joined in the dogpile. Kai made a dramatic show of leaping into the air, more or less belly flopping on Cole’s chest.   
  
    “Fuck! Kai! That hurts!”   
  
    Zane smiled and stood up. Cole flailed his one free arm, the one that was still clutched around what he’d been holding. “Zane, help.”   
  
    He only hummed as he stepped over and slowly leaned forward. The rest of the team screamed as he started to add his weight bit by bit.   
  
    “Zane, you’re too heavy.” Jay whined. “Stop!”   
  
    “Oh god, we’ll be crushed.” Lloyd tried to be dramatic.  
  
    “You’ll be crushed?” Cole’s voice was muffled by this point. “How do you think I feel?”   
  
    By this point all of them were laughing, and Zane refrained himself from making it worse as he stood up again.   
  
    “Guys, I know you want to celebrate.” Cole said. “But uh, I’m still covered in blood, and day old bandages, and this dirt is really soggy. Can we go home?”   
  
    Jay made a face as he leapt off again. The others were still chuckling, and Kai helped Cole stand back up.   
  
    “Hold on,” Pixal cut in, at least on Zane’s end. “Did I hear that correctly?”  
  
    “You did.” Zane responded. “He’s fine. I even scanned for plant life.”   
  
    He heard her sigh. “Remind me to lecture him for frightening me later.”  
  
    “You and me both.”   
  
    “Come on guys, let’s get back to the ship.” Lloyd summoned his dragon and already took off. Kai and Nya were close behind.   
  
    “Race you.” Jay shouted as his appeared.   
  
    “Ugh,” Cole groaned. “I don’t think I even have the energy to do that.”   
  
    Zane summoned his ice dragon, extending his hand to Cole. The earth ninja looked shy for a moment, glancing between it and Zane’s face. Finally he took it, pulling himself up. Once more he hesitated before wrapping his arms around Zane’s stomach.   
  
    With Cole secure the nindroid took off, more than glad to leave the bog behind them.   
  
    “I’m alive.” Cole mumbled.  
  
    “Indeed.”   
  
    “But, how? Did you...”  
  
    “I don’t know.” Zane answered truthfully. “I do not think my feelings for you changed but... perhaps something did. I still need time to process it.”  
  
    “Yeah,” Cole sighed. “I think I could sleep for a week.”   
  
    Zane let the conversation pause as he focused on catching up with his team. The Bounty was still hovering over the center of the bog.   
  
    “Uh, you mind if I hold on tighter?” Cole’s voice was quiet compared to the wind around them.   
  
    Zane found himself smiling. “Not at all.”   
  
    Cole’s arms tightened around his middle as the earth ninja hid his face in Zane’s shoulder. He took a deep breath, and Zane didn’t miss the quiet sigh.   
  
    This was nice, Zane decided. He liked this. He wouldn’t mind it if went on a bit longer.   
  
    “Pixal, tell the others we’re taking my dragon back to the temple.”   
  
    He swore she was giggling when she answered, “understood.”   
  
\-----------------  
  
    Cole wiped the sweat off his forehead with his arm since his palms were caked in dirt. He finally took a step back from the flower bed. He’d spent all morning clearing out the weeds, digging up the soil, and planting those seeds he’d choked up almost a week ago.  
  
    They looked like sunflower seeds, were possibly cursed, but after days of no activity he figured it couldn’t hurt to do something with them, right?   
  
    He just wished he knew where they came from. He was fairly sure he’d been coughing up morning glories during his curse.   
  
    Cole picked up his water bottle and took a few sips to cool down. The air was never that hot up here, but the constant sunshine would still wear on you after a while. The lack of cloud cover meant there was rarely any shade.   
  
    “So you actually did plant them.”  
  
    Cole almost spat out his water at the sound of her voice. He spun around to see Ruta standing about ten feet away, grinning.   
  
    His powers activated in a snap, about to rip the ground up from under her.  
  
    “Calm down.” She held up her hands and the image of her flashed. “I’m just a projection. Not stupid enough to try invading your temple.” She laughed. “I’d die.”   
  
    “What do you want?” Cole growled, not dropping his defenses. “How did you even cast this up here?”  
  
    “I always layer my spells, Cole.” Her eyes glowed for a second. “I’m always well prepared.”  
  
    “For what?”  
  
    Ruta shrugged. “Congrats on not dying by the way. Glad you took advantage of my nudge in the right direction.”  
  
    “Haha, hilarious.” Cole kept glaring but let his muscles relax. “Don’t start talking like you saved my life.”  
  
    “I didn’t, you could have died anyway, but you made the right decisions.” Her gaze moved to the flower bed.   
  
    “Are those cursed as well?” Cole pointed at them, now wondering if planting them was a good idea.   
  
    “No, you got rid of the curse.” She stuck her tongue out at him. “They’ll grow as your relationship with Zane does, or whither with it, although I don’t see that as being very likely.” She was laughing again.   
  
    Cole took a deep breath, unclenching his fists. “Why are you here, Ruta?”   
  
    “Just dropping by, checking in.” She waved a hand. “I’m not your enemy, you know.”  
  
    “You’re certainly not an ally.”  
  
    “Nope! Not that either. Don’t ever come back to the bog by the way, unless you plan on paying for something. I won’t be so friendly if you try and threaten me again.” She kept grinning as she said that, but Cole could tell she wasn’t joking.   
  
    “...Were you lying? When you said we’d find Wu again.”  
  
    “Nope, you will.” Her eyes glowed again. “Without a doubt you will. Want a another small piece of advice?”   
  
    He narrowed his eyes.  
  
    “Be careful who you trust.”  
  
    “Huh?”  
  
    “Welp, I’ve got to go.” She clapped her hands together. “Good luck with your new boyfriend.” Her eyes flashed again. “And new girlfriend.”   
  
    “What?”   
  
    She didn’t clarify that statement at all. The image of her quickly faded before popping into golden lights that floated up into the air.   
  
    Well, that was odd. Cole was starting to wonder if he really saw that or if the sun was getting to him. He took a few more sips of water just in case.   
  
    “Cole?”   
  
    He looked over at the side of the building to see Zane emerge. The nindroid’s arms were folded behind his back.  
  
    “Hey Zane, what’s up?”  
  
    “Is there where you’ve been all morning?” He looked at the flower bed.   
  
    “Yeah, was a little restless. Thought I’d try planting those seeds.”   
  
    “Are you certain they’re safe?”  
  
    “Pretty sure, and you said you wanted some sunflowers, right?”   
  
    Zane chuckled as he moved closer, until he was standing in front of Cole. “I am surprised you remember that.”   
  
    “Hey, when your crush compares you to sunflowers you don’t just forget about it.” He drank some more water to ease his nerves. It was so much easier now to discuss that with Zane, but it didn’t keep his heart from fluttering. “I mean, you think it’d be Kai since he has the fire and all that.”   
  
    Zane brushed Cole’s hair away from his forehead. The cool metal felt so nice on his warm skin. “For all of Kai’s fire power, he does not brighten the room the same way you do.”   
  
    Cole had to take a second to breath. “God, Zane.”  
  
    “Was that too forward?”  
  
    “No,” Cole shook his head. “Sorry, still getting used to this I guess. Almost feels like some kind of dream.” He reached up to take Zane’s hand, letting their fingers slide together. “Did you uh, ever figure out what changed? What broke the curse?”   
  
    “I am fairly certain my feelings did not change.” Zane pulled Cole’s hand over, holding it close to his lips. “But knowing how you felt, hearing what the others had to say, it changed my perspective of them. I did not realize I wanted more because I did not realize it was a possibility.”   
  
    “Yeah well,” Cole kept himself from fidgeting in case Zane let go. “Maybe if I worked up the nerve to confess sooner we could have avoided all of this.”   
  
    “It is in the past. Let us focus on the present.” Zane seemed to kiss his knuckles before he let go. “Speaking of, Pixal wanted to speak with you.”  
  
    “Huh?”   
  
    “But she said you forgot to put on your communicator this morning.” Zane held out the device.  
  
    “Oh, whoops.” Cole tried to laugh it off as he took it and put it behind his ear. “Sorry Pix, what’s up?”  
  
    “I will tell you in a moment.” She was clearly trying to not sound annoyed. “When you aren’t busy.”   
  
    Cole would have objected that he wasn’t, but Zane’s hand under his chin cut off that statement. He met the nindroid’s gaze.   
  
    “My apologies.” Zane almost let go. “There is... something I wanted to try.”   
  
    Cole swallowed. “Oh?”   
  
    “I ah.” Zane kept glancing around, uncharacteristically shy. “I do not have much experience or knowledge when it comes to... smooching, as Jay put it. But, ah, is that something you want?”  
  
    Cole blinked. “You’re asking if I want to kiss you?”   
  
    “I believe that would be the simple way of putting it.”   
  
    He snorted, almost laughed as he slid a hand behind Zane’s neck. “Honestly, I haven’t thought about much else since you saved me. Would have done it as soon as I woke up if Jay hadn’t tackled me.”   
  
    “Is that what that was?” Zane said. “I wasn’t sure what to make of you suddenly–”   
  
    Cole rolled his eyes and pulled Zane closer, meeting his lips. He kept it short, for now, in spite of how much he wanted to linger, feel that cool metal against his skin. Still, he stayed close, close enough that their noses kept bumping together.   
  
    “How was that?”  
  
    Zane blinked, as if he had to reboot something. “Ah, well, it doesn’t feel much different than this?” He pressed their foreheads together. “But it still feels nice...”   
  
    “Well, anytime you want either just say the word.” Cole kissed his nose, then his cheek, making a light trail to his bottom jaw. The nindroid actually giggled from the contact.  
  
    Cole would have kept going, but of course they were interrupted.   
  
    “Zane,” The lightning ninja was already shouting before he rounded the corner. “Kai might have set the training equipment on fire and Nya isn’t around to– oh.”  
  
    Cole snapped away from Zane, the heat rushing to his cheeks.   
  
    “Whoops, sorry.” Jay was snickering. “Guess I interrupted something.”  
  
    “Shut up, Jay.” Cole growled.   
  
    “But uh, there is a fire.” Jay pointed. “So.”  
  
    “I will be there in a moment.” Zane said, clearly trying to keep his composure.   
  
    Jay looked concerned as he glanced between them but finally took off.  
  
    “Yeah,” Cole sighed. “You probably should get that.”  
  
    “We can continue later.” Zane took his hand, kissing his knuckles again. “And um, perhaps spend some more time together.”   
  
    Cole raised an eyebrow. “You mean a date?”  
  
    “Yes!”  
  
    “Well my dad was telling me about the lineup of musicals going on in Ninjago City if that interests you.”   
  
    “That sounds wonderful.” Zane moved closer and pressed their foreheads together. “I will talk to you later.”   
  
    “Y-yeah, later.”  
  
    With that Zane took off, running back around the temple. By now Cole could could catch a trace of the smell of smoke. Just what had Kai been doing?   
  
    “Cole.” Pixal spoke up.  
  
    He tapped the communicator. “Yeah?”  
  
    “Turn to your left.”  
  
    Cole glanced over and jumped back when he saw Pixal’s head poking up from the ledge. He looked back to see if Zane was still nearby before rushing over. “Pix? What are you doing?”   
  
    She raised up even further and Cole realized she was standing on the wing of her jet. “I have come to rescue you from the palace.”  
  
    He blinked. “Huh?”  
  
    She sighed. “Noted, that didn’t work. I was about to do a patrol in the city. There have been some increases in gang activity lately. Would you like to join me?”  
  
    Cole kept blinking. “Wait, like, just you and me?”  
  
    “Yes.”  
  
    He squinted. “Pix... are you asking me out?”   
  
    She turned her gaze away. “Well, if we are both going to be with Zane I imagine it would only benefit us to spend some more time together.”  
  
    Cole bit his lip to keep himself from laughing, not about to admit how cute this was either. “That’s true I guess. Yeah, okay, but if you still plan on keeping your identity a secret, you’d better come up with an excuse for me leaving.” He put his hands on his hips. “You still have to tell Zane, by the way.”  
  
    “Another time, I feel the entire team still needs to recover from that shock.”  
  
    “Yeah, yeah, okay.” Cole shook his head. “Just let me get cleaned up first.” He waved a hand and turned around, only for Pixal to grab his wrist. When he turned back she pulled him into a hug.   
  
    “I am glad you are alright.”   
  
    Cole sighed, returning the gesture. “Yeah, you and me both.”   
  
    She let go, although she didn’t move back until after she kissed his cheek. “Hurry and get ready. I will be out here waiting. I’ll tell the team you went to see Karlof for a few hours since he’s been worried sick.”  
  
    Cole laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, we should probably go see him anyway, huh.”  
  
    “Indeed. Now hurry up.”  
  
    “Not worried about the team spotting you?”  
  
    Pixal chuckled and jumped in the cockpit. “I run the security here, Cole. I keep myself invisible.”  
  
    He smiled. “You know, it’s a shame I haven’t appreciated your wit until now.”   
  
    “Indeed it is,” she grinned at him as the cockpit closed and the jet lowered out of view.   
  
    Cole shook his head and began to head back to the temple entrance. He wondered if Pixal had the patience for him to take a quick shower.   
  
    He paused on his walk, glancing down at the flower bed. He’d just planted those seeds but he could already see the sprouts coming up out of the ground.   
  
    Cole smiled. His body felt light as he broke into a sprint. He wondered how fast he could make those flowers bloom.  
  
    For the first time in a while he was excited about what the future held.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things Pixal can't do  
> 1\. Cook  
> 2\. Flirt
> 
> BUT yup, that's the end guys. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it (even with me dropping cliffhangers like that alsdkjf). Catch me getting back to some other bigger projects. 
> 
> Maybe Ruta will appear again sometime, who knows

**Author's Note:**

> [Got a sketch of Ruta over here if you want a more clear ref of her.](http://ceata88.tumblr.com/post/174834450554/did-u-know-i-have-one-1-ninjago-oc-shes)
> 
> Welcome to the ride


End file.
